Nangura

Nangura spinosa, the Nangur spiny skink or Nangur skink, is a lizard known from two patches of dry-rainforest in South East Queensland, Australia.[2] It was formerly placed in the monotypic genus Nangura but was moved to Concinnia following the molecular phylogenetic studies of O'Connor & Moritz (2003) and Skinner and co-authors (2013).[3][4] It was returned to Nangura in 2018. This species is known only from two localities; the type locality, now in Nangura National Park, and a much smaller isolated population in Oakview National Park and adjacent Oakview State Forest. The total distribution spans just 42 square kilometers, within which this species occupies less than 4 square kilometers, with an estimated population size of less than 200 individuals. It is threatened by invasive species including cats, pigs, dogs, foxes and cane toads, by the invasive plant species Lantana camara, which increases fire risk and changes forest structure, and in some sites by logging and road maintenance.[5] Consequently, it is listed as critically endangered under the Australian Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999[6] It resembles Concinnia queenslandiae in its spiny scales and like that species it is live bearing. Along with minor differences in scalation, the Nangur spiny skink differs from other Australian Sphenomorphid skinks in its karyotype of 2n=28 chromosomes, where most others have 2n=30. It is also unlike related species in that it lives in burrows, which occur in small colonies through the dry rainforest habitat.[5] There is some indication of parental care in this species, with adults sharing burrows with juveniles. [5]

Nangur spiny skink
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Family: Scincidae
Genus: Nangura
Covacevich, Couper, & James, 1993
Species:
N. spinosa
Binomial name
Nangura spinosa
Covacevich, Couper, & James, 1993
Synonyms[2]
  • Concinnia spinosa Covacevich, Couper & James, 1993

References
  1. Hoskin, C., Couper, P., Amey, A., Wilson, S., Venz, M., Hobson, R. & Ferguson, D. 2018. Nangura spinosa. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2018: e.T109480565A109480570. https://doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-1.RLTS.T109480565A109480570.en. Downloaded on 07 May 2019.
  2. Nangura spinosa at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 7 May 2019.
  3. O'Connor, David; Moritz, Craig (2003). "A molecular phylogeny of the Australian skink genera Eulamprus, Gnypetoscincus and Nangura". Australian Journal of Zoology. 51 (4): 317–330. doi:10.1071/ZO02050.
  4. Skinner, Adam; Hutchinson, Mark N.; Lee, Michael S.Y. (Dec 2013). "Phylogeny and divergence times of Australian Sphenomorphus group skinks (Scincidae, Squamata)". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 69 (3): 906–918. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2013.06.014.
  5. Covacevich, Jeanette A.; Couper, Patrick J.; James, C. (24 December 1993). "A new skink, Nangura spinosa Gen. et Sp. Nov., from a Dry Rainforest of Southeastern Queensland". Memoirs of the Queensland Museum. 34 (1): 159–167.
  6. Commonwealth of Australia, Department of the Environment and Energy. "Species Profile and Threats Database". Nangura Spinosa. Retrieved 17 May 2017.
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