Scincus

Scincus is a genus of skinks, lizards in the family Scincidae. The genus contains four species, all of which are typical desert inhabitants, living in sandy and dune-like areas with a hot and dry climate. Species in the genus Scincus can be found from Arabia to the Sahara desert. Scincus is the type genus of the subfamily Scincinae. As the subfamily Scincinae appears to be paraphyletic and is in need of revision, it is as yet undetermined which skink genera are closely enough related to Scincus to be retained in the Scincinae. (Austin & Arnold 2006). The genus Scincus contains four species which are recognized as being valid. Nota bene: A binomial authority in parentheses indicates that the species was originally described in a genus other than Scincus.