Dasia griffini explained

Dasia griffini, commonly known as Griffin's keel-scaled tree skink or Griffin's dasia, is a species of tree skink, a lizard in the family Scincidae. The species is endemic to central and northern Palawan and southern Mindoro in the Philippines.^[1]

Etymology

The specific name, griffini, is in honor of American herpetologist Lawrence Edmonds Griffin (1874–1949).^[2]

Description

Griffin’s keel-scaled tree skink may attain a snout-to-vent length (SVL) of .

Behavior and habitat

D. griffini is an arboreal lizard. It is found on tree trunks or aerial ferns 7mto28mm (23feetto92feetm) above the ground. It inhabits dipterocarp primary forests, at altitudes of . More rarely, it is also found in coastal forests and scrubland.

Reproduction

Griffin’s dasia is oviparous.

Taxonomy

D. griffini belongs to the genus Dasia.^[3] It is classified in the subfamily Mabuyinae of the skink family Scincidae.

Conservation status

D. griffini is threatened by logging activities in its habitats.

See also

• List of threatened species of the Philippines

Further reading

• Taylor EH (1915). "New Species of Philippine Lizards". Philippine Journal of Science 10: 89–109 + Plate I. (Dasia griffini, new species, p. 104 + Plate I, figures 5 & 6).

Notes and References

1. Web site: Known distribution of Dasia griffini in the Philippines . https://web.archive.org/web/20120425061550/http://philbreo.lifedesks.org/node/487 . dead . 2012-04-25 . Siler, Cameron . species:Cameron D. Siler . Biodiversity Research & Education Outreach, Philippines .
2. [species:Bo Beolens|Beolens, Bo]
3. Inger, Robert F.. Robert F. Inger. Brown, Walter C. . species:Walter Creighton Brown . 1980 . Species of the Scincid Genus Dasia Gray . Fieldiana Zoology . New Series . 3 . 1–11 . 10.5962/bhl.title.3190 . free.