"A Complete Enigma"—New Zealand Lizard Declared Extinct 130 Years After Only Sighting

"A Complete Enigma"—New Zealand Lizard Declared Extinct 130 Years After Only Sighting

5 years ago
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https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/extinction-countdown/a-complete-enigma-mdash-new-zealand-lizard-declared-extinct-130-years-after-only-sighting/

In 1887 the Belgian-British zoologist George Albert Boulenger, who famously named more than 2,000 species around the world, scientifically described a slim New Zealand lizard he called Oligosoma infrapunctatum—the speckled skink.

 

More than 130 years later, a new paper examines the genetics and morphology of speckled skinks from around New Zealand and comes up with a surprising conclusion: They’re actually at least six different species, one of which—ironically enough, the one first identified by Boulenger—may now be extinct.

"A Complete Enigma"—New Zealand Lizard Declared Extinct 130 Years After Only Sighting

Aug 25, 2019, 8:14pm UTC
https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/extinction-countdown/a-complete-enigma-mdash-new-zealand-lizard-declared-extinct-130-years-after-only-sighting/ > In 1887 the Belgian-British zoologist George Albert Boulenger, who famously named more than 2,000 species around the world, scientifically described a slim New Zealand lizard he called Oligosoma infrapunctatum—the speckled skink. >   More than 130 years later, a new paper examines the genetics and morphology of speckled skinks from around New Zealand and comes up with a surprising conclusion: They’re actually at least six different species, one of which—ironically enough, the one first identified by Boulenger—may now be extinct.