Wildlife in the Garden – Pink-tongued Skink

At first glance, I thought this was a Blue-tongued skink, but after a second look I wasn’t so sure.

Last week after the rain had stopped, this pretty skink came out of the garden and was lying on the pavers. A little bit earlier I had seen a snake in the same area. I wasn’t able to identify the snake before it moved back into the overgrown garden.

This patch of garden near the front door is full of exotic plants. I intend to replant with natives, but this will have to be done gradually so the animals hiding there aren’t exposed.

When I spotted this lizard, I thought it was a blue-tongue, but it looked too long so I had to do some investigating. After taking some photos, I gently encouraged it to move back into the protection of the foliage. It was very docile and opened its mouth to show a blue-tongue. This confused me even more. I knew of Pink-tongued Skinks, and this was my second guess.

After some research I learnt this skink is a Pink-tongue. They are nocturnal, so that explained why it was docile during the day. Juveniles have blue tongues so this one must have been young. I did wonder if the snake had flushed it out. I haven’t seen either since then but will keep looking. The link below has more information about the Pink-tongued Skink and also has a further link to a handy snake and lizard ID service.

Spotted Wildlife in your Garden? We would love to share your photos and observations with other members. Please send info and photos (JPG files) to admin@urbanwildlifegardens.org.au

Pink-tongue Skink reliable advice and management 0413028081.