DOC on trail of rare southern reptiles

BARRY HARCOURT/136893

UNCERTAIN FUTURE: A cryptic skink at Tiwai Peninsula.

Look out for the little guys — skinks and geckos that is.

The Conservation Department is keen to hear about sightings of these small lizards living in the Southland area.

Department biodiversity ranger Ros Cole said one of the most common places to find skinks was the Awarua Waituna Wetlands and Tiwai Penin-sula.

Three species of skink could be found there. These were the green, cryptic and common skink.

The green and the common skink were relatively widespread but the department ranks the cryptic skink "in gradual decline". There could also be geckos living in the area but they were unusually rare.

The species that could possibly still exist there was the green or jewelled gecko. It was the only known form of green gecko living in the southern half of the South Island.

"A sighting of a green gecko by landowners more than 15 years ago suggests that jewelled gecko may still be present in the area."

DOC would be keen to hear of any sightings.

Photographs and descriptions of habitats would be even more appreciated, Ms Cole said. However, she warned it was illegal to take skinks and geckos from the wild to hold in captivity.

CRYPTIC CLUES

• The cryptic skink is in gradual decline. 
• They grow about 75mm long excluding the tail.
• They breed annually, producing two to six young in each litter during January and February.
• They love to bask in the sun and were often spotted sunning themselves on the warm shingle beaches around the Tiwai Peninsula. (Source: Department of Conservation)

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