With three median plates (one mental and two postmentals) from the 

 tip of the chin backwards; dorsolateral light lines dark-edged above 55. 



55. With two dark lines along the center of the back; Minn, to Kansas 



Eumeces septentrionalis septentrionalis (Baird) 



Black-banded or Northern Prairie Skink 

 Dark lines along center of back obscure or absent; Kansas to Texas 

 Eumeces septentrionalis ohtusirostris Bocourt 



Southern Prairie Skink 



56. Limbs, when pressed toward each other along the sides, widely separate; 



no light stripes; Texas and N. M. 



Eumeces humilis (Boulenger) Taylor's Skink 

 Appressed limbs almost or quite touching; young with light stripes 57. 



57. With five light stripes on the body (with a mid-dorsal stripe which forks 



on the head), except in adult males; dorsolateral stripes not involving 

 the second row of scales from the mid-dorsal line; tail of young often 

 blue; head of adult male often red or orange; scale count usually 28- 

 32 58. 



With four light stripes, the dorsolateral ones quite wide, involving the 

 second and third scale rows, or unstriped in adult specimens; tail of 

 young blue or red; scale count 24-28 60. 



58. Dorsolateral light hnes on third and fourth rows of scales (from mid- 



line) ; Atlantic States and Mississippi Valley 



Eumeces fasciatus (Linn.) Common Five-lined Skink 

 (Eumeces quinquelineatus of Cope) 

 Dorsolateral light lines on fourth or fourth and fifth rows of scales 59. 



59. Scales below tail narrow; mid-dorsal light stripe usually not joining the 



diverging light stripes on the head; Va. to Florida and Miss. 



Eumeces inexpectatus Taylor Florida Five-lined Skink 

 Scales below tail much wider than deep; mid-dorsal light stripe forking 

 on the neck to form two diverging stripes on the head; southeastern 

 states to Oklahoma 



Eumeces laticeps (Schneider) Giant Five-lined Skink 



60. Tail of young red; interparietal about two times as long as wide; adults 



uniformly colored; Cal. 



Eumeces gilherti rubricaudatus (Taylor) 

 Western Red-tailed Skink 

 Tail of young blue; interparietal much less than two times as long as 

 wide 6 1 . 



61. Dorsolateral light stripe involving not over half the second row of scales; 



adults striped; Cal. to Wash, and Montana 



Eumeces s\iltonianus (B. &' G.) Western Blue-tailed Skink 

 (Eumeces quadnlineatus Hallowell) 

 Dorsolateral light stripe involving over half the second row of scales; 

 adults losing stripes; Cal. and Ariz. 



Eumeces gilherti gilherti (Van Denburgh) 

 Gilbert's Blue-tailed Skink 



62. Belly with large squarish plates in eight lengthwise rows; scales of back 



granular in appearance; young with a striped pattern, which may 



372 



