Anepischetosia maccoyi
Silhouette: David Orr · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
Anepischetosia maccoyi, also known commonly as the highlands forest-skink, highlands forest skink, Maccoy's elf skink, and McCoy's skink, is a species of lizard in the subfamily Eugongylinae of the family Scincidae. The species is the only species in the monotypic genus Anepischetosia, and is endemic to Australia.
The specific name, maccoyi, is in honor of Irish zoologist Frederick McCoy. The generic name, Anepischetosia, was created by Australian herpetologists Richard W. Wells and C. Ross Wellington in 1985 to replace the generic name, Anepischetos, which was preoccupied by a genus of moths. Anepischetosia is in the subfamily Eugongylinae.
Anepischetosia maccoyi is found in the Australian States of New South Wales, South Australia, and Victoria. The preferred natural habitat of Anepischetosia maccoyi is forest. Anepischetosia maccoyi is terrestrial. It shelters under leaf litter and fallen logs.
Anepischetosia maccoyi appears to be ovoviviparous. The Reptile Database describes the species as being oviparous. However, Lucas and Frost, in their original description of the... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Great Otway National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 2 | Wilsons Promontory National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Melbourne | 🇦🇺 Australia |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a McCoy's Skink sighting in Melbourne on a given day, based on 8 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 21st most-seen of the 23 reptiles we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 20%, if each day is a fresh chance.
Any time of year
In every month with enough records, under 5% of wildlife watchers report a McCoy's Skink in Melbourne on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.
Between 1 and 4 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most McCoy's Skink sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Only Melbourne, in our data
Melbourne is the only city on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate McCoy's Skink sightings: under 5% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
Same family: Scincidae
The closest relatives of the McCoy's Skink that you can see in Melbourne (family Scincidae, Skinks) are Common Bluetongue (about 20%), Pale-flecked Garden Sunskink (about 20%) and Southern Weasel Skink (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the McCoy's Skink is recorded against all the reptiles logged in Melbourne (8 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
