Lampropholis delicata
Silhouette: Michael Scroggie · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~50% in a week ~80%
Lampropholis delicata, the delicate skink, dark-flecked garden sun skink, garden skink, delicate garden skink, rainbow skink or plague skink, or the metallic skink is native to Australia and invasive in New Zealand and Hawaii where it is commonly found in gardens. The species is known for their color dimorphism between males and females; striped morphs and non-striped morphs exist in this species, however the stripe is less pronounced in males. This species' diet consists of a wide range of prey, such as spiders, bees, larvae, and termites. Mating occurs in the late summer and generally one clutch of 2 to 4 eggs are laid per year by each female.
The delicate skink is more common in suburban gardens than in adjacent native bushland. It has a moderate body with a medium length, slender tail. Its scales are smooth. The back and sides are greyish-brown to rich brown, often with darker and paler flecks. A narrow yellowish-brown stripe is usually present on the outer edge of the back. The species can also have two distinct forms: a prominent white stripe and a less prominent white stripe. This dimorphism is not strictly distinguished by gender.
Lampropholis...
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hawaii Volcanoes National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Haleakala National Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 3 | Royal National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 4 | Blue Mountains National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 5 | Lamington National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 6 | Springbrook National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia |
No species of the same family or order lives in Haleakala National Park, so these are its closest relatives here: other reptiles.
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Delicate Skink sighting in Haleakala National Park on a given day, based on 6 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. Over three days the chance rises to about 50%, and over a week to about 80%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February
In that month about 40% of wildlife watchers report a Delicate Skink in Haleakala National Park on a given day, against under 5% in March, June and August–December, the lowest months. That is one of Haleakala National Park's wettest months, with about 350 mm of rain against 110 mm in June.
Between 11 am and 2 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Delicate 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.
2nd of 6
Of the 6 parks where we can rate Delicate Skink sightings, Haleakala National Park ranks 2nd at about 20%. The best odds are in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park (United States, about 40%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Delicate Skink is recorded against all the reptiles logged in Haleakala National Park (6 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), 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.
