''Voeltzkowia mobydick'' 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 mermaid skink, a

lizard Lizards are a widespread group of squamate reptiles, with over 7,000 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica, as well as most oceanic island chains. The group is paraphyletic since it excludes the snakes and Amphisbaenia alt ...

in the family Scincidae. In 2012, the species was first described in a paper by French herpetologists Aurélien Miralles, Miguel Vences, and their colleagues. (''Sirenoscincus mobydick'', new species).

Description

Mermaid skinks have only forelimbs, no hind limbs, hence the common name "

mermaid In folklore, a mermaid is an aquatic creature with the head and upper body of a female human and the tail of a fish. Mermaids appear in the folklore of many cultures worldwide, including Europe, Asia, and Africa. Mermaids are sometimes asso ...

skink". This species's forelimbs are shaped like flippers ('' Voeltzkowia yamagishii'' has claws). The

scientific name In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...

''Voeltzkowia mobydick'' consists of the pre-existing parent genus ''Voeltzkowia'', and the name of the white

sperm whale The sperm whale or cachalot (''Physeter macrocephalus'') is the largest of the toothed whales and the largest toothed predator. It is the only living member of the genus ''Physeter'' and one of three extant species in the sperm whale famil ...

from the 1851 novel '' Moby-Dick'' by

Herman Melville Herman Melville (Name change, born Melvill; August 1, 1819 – September 28, 1891) was an American people, American novelist, short story writer, and poet of the American Renaissance (literature), American Renaissance period. Among his bes ...

. The species name is appropriate because whales have no hind limbs, only forelimbs shaped like flippers, and so does this species of skink. It also lacks pigmentation as Moby Dick did. The

type series In biology, a type is a particular specimen (or in some cases a group of specimens) of an organism to which the scientific name of that organism is formally attached. In other words, a type is an example that serves to anchor or centralizes the ...

consists of two specimens that measured in snout–vent length. The body is about wide at midbody. In preserved specimens, body is entirely pale with eyes visible as dark spots. Colour is assumed to be pinkish in live animals.

Distribution

This 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 elsew ...

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...

, specifically the Sofia Region. The type locality is the urban commune of

Boriziny Boriziny (French: Port-Bergé) is a city (commune urbaine) in western Madagascar in Sofia Region. Geography It is situated at the Route nationale 6 near the bay of Helodrano. The Bemarivo flows near Port Bergé, just before flowing into the Anjo ...

(French: Port-Bergé), Sofia Region, Madagascar.

Taxonomy

In 2015 it was reassigned to the genus ''

Voeltzkowia ''Voeltzkowia'' is a genus of skinks. Geographic range The genus ''Voeltzkowia'' is endemic to Madagascar. Species Three species are recognized as being valid."''Voeltzkowia'' ". The Reptile Database. www.reptile-database.org. *'' Voeltzkowia m ...

'', as ''Voeltzkowia mobydick'', by Miralles et al.. (''Voeltzkowia mobydick'', new combination).

References

External links

* * {{Taxonbar, from=Q3271943 mobydick Reptiles of Madagascar Endemic fauna of Madagascar Reptiles described in 2012 Taxa named by Frank Glaw Taxa named by Miguel Vences