Broad-headed Skink
Plestiodon laticeps
Also known as: Broadhead Skink
Reptilia
UNCOMMON
Stats
- Lifespan
- 4-8 yrs
- Size
- Large
- Diet
- Insectivore
- Activity
- Diurnal
- Social
- Solitary
- Biome
- Temperate forest
- Range
- North America
- Movement
- Climbing
- Breeding
- Egg-laying
- Defense
- Camouflage
- Status
- Uncommon
About
The largest skink in the eastern United States, the Broad-headed Skink gets its name from the massive, swollen jaws that breeding males develop, which turn the whole head a fiery orange-red. Juveniles hatch with glossy black bodies, gold stripes, and an electric-blue tail that can detach to distract predators.
Life cycle
- 1.hatchlingA miniature lizard cuts itself free from its egg and starts hunting tiny insects within days.
- 2.juvenileA juvenile sheds repeatedly as it grows, often duller-colored than adults and quick to dart for cover.
- 3.adultFully grown with adult coloration and size.
Learn more
Taxonomy
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Reptilia
- Order
- Squamata
- Family
- Scincidae
- Genus
- Plestiodon
- Species
- Plestiodon laticeps