234 



LIZARDS OF THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS 



parietals forming a suture behind the interparietal; first upper 

 labial larger, fifth below the centre of the eye. Ear-opening 

 punctiform, about as large as the nostril. 24 or 26 smooth 

 scales round the middle of the body. Prseanals not or very sHght- 

 ly enlarged. The fore limb, stretched forwards, reaches about 

 half-way from the ear ; the hind limb equals about the length of 

 the shielded part of the head. Digits extremely short, subequal. 

 Tail thick, as long as, or a little shorter than, head and body. 

 Pale brown above, with more or less distinct darker longitudinal 

 lines running between the series of scales; lower surfaces yel- 

 lowish, uniform or with brown longitudinal lines." 



Measurements of Lygosoma chalcides {Linnaeus). 



Total length 

 Head length 

 Width of head 

 Body 

 Foreleg 

 Hind leg 

 Tail 



mm. 



192 



10 



6 



86 



5 



8 



96 



It is distributed throughout Java, Malay Peninsula, Siam, 

 and southern China. In the Philippines it is known only from 



Palawan and Calamian Islands. 



Remarks. — Four specimens were 

 taken on Busuanga Island and sent to 

 the Dresden Museum by Dr. A. Scha- 

 denberg. I believe the first recorded 

 specimen for the Philippines is that of 

 Gogorza y Gonzales. 



I collected several of these diminu- 

 tive skinks on Busuanga and one spe- 

 cimen in Palawan during April, 1918. 

 They feed largely on the larvse and 

 adults of white ants and can usually 



Fig. 42. Lygosoma chalcides (Lin- bc fOUnd abOUt rottlng logS whcre 



nseus) ; after de Rooij ; a, head, there arc auts. The youug have 



dorsal view; h, head lateral view; . . ^i,^ U^^l^ 



much enlarged. numcrous stripcs on the back. 



Genus TROPIDOPHORTJS Dumeril and Bibron 

 Tropidophorus Dumeril and Bibron, Erp. Gen. 5 (1839) 554; Gray, 

 Cat. Liz. (1845) 101; Gunther, Kept. Brit. India (1864) 76; Bou- 

 LENGER, Cat. Liz. Brit. Mus. 3 (1887) 359; Fauna Brit. India, Kept. 

 (1890) 217; de Rooij, Kept. Indo-Aust. Arch. 1 (1915) 275. 



