Trachylepis varia
Silhouette: David Orr · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~60% in a week ~90%
The eastern variable skink (Trachylepis varia) is a species of skink found in East Africa. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | uMkhuze Game Reserve | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 2 | Gorongosa National Park | 🇲🇿 Mozambique | |
| 3 | Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 4 | Addo Elephant National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 5 | Kruger National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pretoria | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 2 | Johannesburg | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 3 | Durban | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Variable Skink sighting in uMkhuze Game Reserve on a given day, based on 10 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 12th most-seen of the 18 reptiles we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 60%, and over a week to about 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February–March and October
In those months about 40% of wildlife watchers report a Variable Skink in uMkhuze Game Reserve on a given day, against under 5% in January and April–September, the lowest months. Those are among uMkhuze Game Reserve's wettest months, with about 85 mm of rain a month against 15 mm in July.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Variable 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.
Yes
Of the 5 parks where we can rate Variable Skink sightings, uMkhuze Game Reserve has the highest daily chance: about 20%. Next come Gorongosa National Park (Mozambique, about 20%) and Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park (South Africa, about 10%).
Same genus: Trachylepis
The closest relatives of the Variable Skink that you can see in uMkhuze Game Reserve (genus Trachylepis, Afro-Malagasy Mabuyas) are African Striped Skink (about 60%) and Rainbow Skink (about 30%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Variable Skink is recorded against all the reptiles logged in uMkhuze Game Reserve (10 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.
