Alice Springs Fauna •
Alice Springs ReptilesBearded Dragon Bynoe’s Gecko Common Desert Ctenotus Ctenotus saxatilis Eastern Tree Dtella Long-nosed Dragon Perentie
Ctenotus leonhardii is a member of Sphenomorphine Skinks, subfamily Sphenomorphinae. This species of skink is found in a range of arid and semi-arid regions throughout mainland Australia.
The following photos of Ctenotus leonhardii was discovered in a medium size flower pot that was being emptied out. It was a cold morning (in May 2023) when we accidentally disturbed it. It was placed carefully in the garden bed under the cover of a shrub. We went back to check on it a couple of times, and then the last time we looked, it had disappeared.
Leonhardi’s ctenotus is a small, slender terrestrial skink. This species is typically brown to ochre-brown above, sometimes with a dark brown stripe down the vertebra. There are pale stripes running from the eyes down to the tail on either side, often with a dark brown edge above. Below this stripe is a darker, sometimes black lateral stripe with a complex pattern of white spots over the top. From the groin there is a pale cream stripe running towards the flanks, with a series of white spots near the arms and a continuing pale lateral stripe down the length of the tail.
Source: Wikipedia2
Ctenotus leonhardii, has a number of common names, Leonhardi’s ctenotus, Leonhardi’s Skink and Common Desert Ctenotus.
- Scientific classification
- Kingdom: Animalia
- Phylum: Chordata
- Subphylum: Vertebrata
- Class: Reptilia
- Order: Squamata
- Suborder: Sauria
- Family: Scincidae
- Subfamily: Sphenomorphinae
- Genus: Ctenotus
- Species: Ctenotus leonhardii
Footnote & References
- Many thanks for ID to Christine Schlesinger, member of Alice Springs Field Naturalist Club, Facebook group, https://www.facebook.com/groups/alicefieldnats/
- Ctenotus leonhardii, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ctenotus_leonhardii
- Leonhardi’s Ctenotus Ctenotus leonhardii), iNatutralistAU, https://inaturalist.ala.org.au/taxa/37085-Ctenotus-leonhardii
- Ctenotus leonhardii (Sternfeld, 1919), Leonhardi’s Ctenotus, Atlas of Living Australia, https://bie.ala.org.au/species/https://biodiversity.org.au/afd/taxa/53856a0c-89d2-4753-9755-ff270ab45d24
Alice Springs ReptilesBearded Dragon Bynoe’s Gecko Common Desert Ctenotus Ctenotus saxatilis Eastern Tree Dtella Long-nosed Dragon Perentie
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Alice Springs FloraAlice Springs Flora Index Acacia ligulata Annual Yellowtop Apple Bush Bougainvillea Burdekin Plum Carob Tree (Ceratonia siliqa) Cattle Bush Desert Cotton (Aerva javanica) Desert Oak Eremophila Wildberry Feijoa sellowiana Flannel Cudweed Fork-leaf Corkwood Ghost Gum Golden Everlasting Kurrajong Lemon-flowered Gum MacDonnell’s Desert Fuchsia Native Bluebell Native Tomato Needlewood Olive Tree Perennial Yellow Top Rat’s Tail River Red Gum Inland River Red Gum Rosy Dock Round-leaved Mallee Scurvy Grass Silky Eremophila Stemodia viscosa Striped Mintbush Sturt’s Desert Pea Sturt’s Desert Rose Tangled Leschenaultia Tar Vine Weeping Bottlebrush White Cedar Yellow Billybutton Yellow-keeled Swainsona Yellow Oleander