Eulamprus tympanum

Southern Water Skink at Booth, ACT

Eulamprus tympanum at Booth, ACT - 2 Nov 2017
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Identification history

Eulamprus tympanum 6 Nov 2017 WillO
Eulamprus heatwolei 6 Nov 2017 JohnBundock

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3 comments

WillO wrote:
   7 Nov 2017
Water skinks can be very hard to identify from a single photograph. I am pretty sure this is Eulamprus tympanum - it lacks the pale mark along the dorso-lateral area from above shoulder to above forelimb that E. heatwolei has. I can see what is probably a pale front edge to the ear opening (although in my experience this character is unreliable). Subjectively I have found that E. tympanum always seems to have a rounder head profile (boof head) compared to E. heatwolei with its slightly flattened look to the head. My guess is that you saw this on the valley floor in cold air drainage basin near a swampy creek or bog.
JohnBundock wrote:
   7 Nov 2017
You are correct with the location description.
   24 Jun 2018
Very good insight into subtleties of appearance, reliability of distinguishing characteristics and microhabitat preferences between these two species WillO.

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Location information

Sighting information

  • 3 Abundance
  • 2 Nov 2017 12:53 PM Recorded on
  • JohnBundock Recorded by

Species information

  • Eulamprus tympanum Scientific name
  • Southern Water Skink Common name
  • Not Sensitive
  • Local native
  • Non-Invasive
  • Up to 1897.44m Recorded at altitude
  • 71 images trained Machine learning
  • Synonyms

    Eulamprus tympanum tympanum

Record quality

  • Images or audio
  • More than one media file
  • Confirmed by an expert moderator
  • Nearby sighting(s) of same species
  • GPS evidence of location
  • Description
  • Additional attributes
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