''Parvoscincus beyeri'', also known commonly as Beyer's sphenomorphus, is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

of skink, a lizard in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

Scincidae. The species is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...

to the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

Etymology

The specific name, ''beyeri'', is in honor of American ethnologist Henry Otley Beyer. Beolens B, Watkins M, Grayson M (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . (''Sphenomorphus beyeri'', p. 24).

Geographic range

In the Philippines, ''P. beyeri'' is found on the island of

Luzon Luzon (; ) is the largest and most populous island in the Philippines. Located in the northern portion of the Philippines archipelago, it is the economic and political center of the nation, being home to the country's capital city, Manila, as ...

Habitat

The preferred natural

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

of ''P. beyeri'' is

forest A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...

, at altitudes of .

Description

Large for its

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...

, ''P. beyeri'' may attain a snout-to-vent length (SVL) of .

Dorsally Standard anatomical terms of location are used to unambiguously describe the anatomy of animals, including humans. The terms, typically derived from Latin or Greek roots, describe something in its standard anatomical position. This position prov ...

, it is brown with white spots. Ventrally, it is bright golden yellow.

Behavior

''P. beyeri'' hides in leaf litter and thick moss, and under rotten fallen logs, on the forest floor.

Reproduction

The mode of reproduction of ''P. beyeri'' is unknown.

References

* Brown RM, Ferner JW, Sison RV (1995). "Rediscovery and redescription of ''Sphenomorphus beyeri'' Taylor (Reptilia: Lacertilia: Scincidae) from the Zambales Mountains of Luzon, Philippines". ''Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington'' 108 (1): 6–17. * Linkem CW, Diesmos AC, Brown RM (2011). "Molecular systematics of the Philippine forest skinks (Squamata: Scincidae: ''Sphenomorphus''): testing morphological hypotheses of interspecific relationships". ''Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society'' 163: 1217–1243. (''Parvoscincus beyeri'', new combination). * Taylor EH (1922). "Additions to the herpetological fauna of the Philippine Islands, II". ''Philippine Journal of Science'' 21: 257–303 + Plates 1–4. (''Sphenomorphus beyeri'', new species, pp. 283–285). Parvoscincus Reptiles described in 1922 Taxa named by Edward Harrison Taylor {{skink-stub