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Growing up in Louisiana, I loved spotting lizards in my backyard – the more interesting and colorful the better. I’d find large green anoles, spotted geckos, and slender glass lizards, which I often mistook for snakes. But the most evasive and exciting discovery was the five-lined skink, named for its five yellow or cream-colored stripes running down its back (dorsally) and sides (laterally). With their slender bodies and stubby legs, five-lined skinks resemble snakes more than typical lizards.

Where to Find Them

Five-lined skinks live across the eastern United States, from southern Canada to central Florida, and west to eastern Texas and Oklahoma. They prefer moist, temperate areas with abundant hiding places, especially forest edges, rotten wood, building foundations, trash piles, and stone walls. These moist environments are especially important to the survival of their eggs, which need an abundance of water and have a softer outer shell than birds’ eggs.

Five-lined skinks also thrive in areas with plenty of basking sites. Small crevices are great for nesting and hiding, and they also serve as the perfect hunting ground for these skillful carnivores. Typically, five-lined skinks feast on crawling bugs such as spiders, millipedes, crickets, and termites. However, they will also go after small frogs, lizards, and newborn mice.

Protective Parents

Five-lined skinks are fantastic mothers. After basking in the sun, the female lays on her eggs to keep them warm. Females also keep a watchful eye over their eggs until the day they hatch. Hatchlings are precocial; this means they are immediately independent from the moment they hatch, which typically occurs in the summer months. Imagine having to get a job the day you were born!

Natural Defenses

What made five-lined skinks such a prized find for me was their unique pattern and colors. Though their bright blue tails and the lines across their backs add a splash of color to their typically dark hiding places, these markings have a practical use. The five lines act as an optical illusion to confuse predators as the skinks run away. But if that doesn’t work, skinks have a second line of defense: their brightly colored tails. Their unnaturally bright coloration draws in the attack. Then, if caught, the skink will drop its tail and make its escape.

If you want to observe these beautiful reptiles, spring and summer are the best times to find them before they go into hibernation from October to mid-March. While it can be tempting to try and catch them, it’s best to observe skinks without handling them. Five-lined skinks can be extremely territorial, especially during mating season, and they may bite if they feel threatened. Though their tiny teeth pose no real harm – the bite is more startling than painful — it’s still best to avoid close contact. People should also avoid grabbing their tails, or the skinks may drop them to escape. The tail is their best defense, and once it’s gone, it takes some time to grow back.

Fun Facts:
  • Determining the difference between male and female five-lined skinks comes down to coloration. Females typically retain their five-lined pattern and bright blue or grey-blue tails. Males, on the other hand, typically lose their stripes as they mature, displaying a uniform tan or olive coloration. Males become even more pronounced during mating season, exhibiting a bright reddish-orange coloration around their heads and cheeks.
  • During a single mating season, males will mate with multiple females to increase their reproductive success. Due to their protective natures, female five-lined skinks mate with only one male per season to watch over their nest.

 

Want to Learn More?

Check out these fantastic sites:

“American Five-Lined Skink,” Animalia

“Five-Lined Skink,” North Carolina Resources Commission

“Skink Vs Lizard: Understanding The Key Differences,” Berry Patch Farms

 

Written by Mason Blount