Mochlus sundevallii
Silhouette: David Orr · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~50%
Mochlus sundevallii, also known commonly as Peters' eyelid skink, Peters' writhing skink, and Sundevall's writhing skink, is a species of lizard in the family Scincidae. The species is endemic to Sub-Saharan Africa. The specific name, sundevallii, is in honor of Swedish zoologist Carl Jakob Sundevall.
M. sundevallii is found in Angola, Botswana, Democratic Republic of Congo, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Somalia, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. The Reptile Database also lists Central African Republic, Sudan, and possibly South Sudan.
The preferred natural habitats of M. sundevallii are shrubland, savanna, and forest, at altitudes from sea level to 2,000 m (6,600 ft). M. sundevallii usually has a snout-to-vent length (SVL) of 6–8 cm (2.4–3.1 in), but may grow to almost 9 cm (3.5 in) SVL. Dorsally, it is grayish or light brown, with dark brown speckling. Ventrally, it is uniformly cream-colored, except for the underside of the tail, which may have speckling.
M. sundevallii is oviparous. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kruger National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
More parks will be added in future updates.
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pretoria | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kyiv Zoo | 🇺🇦 Ukraine | |
| 2 | Hartley’s Crocodile Adventures | 🇦🇺 Australia |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Sundevall's Writhing Skink sighting in Pretoria on a given day, based on 10 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 15th most-seen of the 20 reptiles we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 50%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February, May and July
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Sundevall's Writhing Skink in Pretoria on a given day, against under 5% in March, August and October–January, the lowest months.
Between 5 and 8 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Sundevall's Writhing Skink sightings with a recorded time, and about 7 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is most active around dawn and dusk.
Only Pretoria, in our data
Pretoria is the only city on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Sundevall's Writhing Skink sightings: about 10% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
Same family: Scincidae
The closest relatives of the Sundevall's Writhing Skink that you can see in Pretoria (family Scincidae, Skinks) are Montane Speckled Skink (about 40%), Smooth Variable Skink (about 20%) and Variable Skink (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Sundevall's Writhing Skink is recorded against all the reptiles logged in Pretoria (10 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.
