Lomi's blind legless skink (''Typhlosaurus lomiae'') 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
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
Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...
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 elsew ...
to
Little Namaqualand
Namaqualand (khoekhoe: "Nama-kwa" meaning Nama Khoe people's land) is an arid region of Namibia and South Africa, extending along the west coast over and covering a total area of . It is divided by the lower course of the Orange River into ...
in
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
.
[
]
Etymology
The specific name ''lomiae'' honours Miss Lomi Wessels Brown, Collection Manager of lower vertebrates and invertebrates at the Transvaal Museum
The Ditsong National Museum of Natural History, formerly the Transvaal Museum, is a natural history museum situated in Pretoria, South Africa. It is located on Paul Kruger Street, between Visagie and Minnaar Streets, opposite the Pretoria City Ha ...
since 1976.[
]
Taxonomy
In 1986 South African herpetologist Wulf Dietrich Haacke originally named this species ''Typhlosaurus lomii'', which is masculine (genitive singular). In 2004 J. Pieter Michels and Aaron Matthew Bauer corrected the specific name to ''lomiae'', which is feminine (genitive singular) because it honors a woman.[Michels JP, Bauer AM (2004). "Some corrections to the scientific names of amphibians and reptiles". ''Bonner Zoologische Beiträge'' 52: 83–94.]
Description
''T. lomiae'' is limbless.[ It is blind, slender, and small. The usual snout-to-vent length (SVL) of adults is . ]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 bright goldish pink. Ventrally, it is whitish and almost translucent.[ Branch, Bill (2004). ''Field Guide to Snakes and other Reptiles of Southern Africa''. Sanibel Island, Florida: Ralph Curtis Books. 399 pp., 112 plates. (''Typhlosaurus lomii'', p. 38 + Plate 43).]
Habitat
The preferred 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 ''T. lomiae'' is succulent veld
Veld ( or ), also spelled veldt, is a type of wide open rural landscape in :Southern Africa. Particularly, it is a flat area covered in grass or low scrub, especially in the countries of South Africa, Lesotho, Eswatini, Zimbabwe and Bots ...
with sandy soil.[
]
Reproduction
''T. lomiae'' is viviparous
Among animals, viviparity is development of the embryo inside the body of the parent. This is opposed to oviparity which is a reproductive mode in which females lay developing eggs that complete their development and hatch externally from the m ...
.[
]
References
Further reading
*Haacke WD (1986). "Description of a new species of ''Typhlosaurus'' Wiegmann, 1834 (Reptilia: Scincidae) from the west coast of southern Africa, with new records of related species". ''Annals of the Transvaal Museum'' 34 (9): 227–235. (''Typhlosaurus lomii'', new species).
Typhlosaurus
Skinks of Africa
Endemic reptiles of South Africa
Reptiles described in 1986
Taxonomy articles created by Polbot
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