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Citation: Midtgaard, Rune. RepFocus - A Survey of the Reptiles of the World. (www.repfocus.dk).
Latest update: May 12th, 2024.


Taxonomy of the family Scincidae
Bibliography of the genus Acontias
Biodiversity of the family Scincidae








Genus
Acontias

Greater Legless Skinks, Dart Skinks, Lance Skinks

Lanzenskinke

Pilskinker

1817 Acontias Cuvier (type species: Anguis meleagris Linnaeus 1766)
1911 Aconthophiops Sternfeld (type species: Acontophiops lineatus Sternfeld 1912; syn. Lamb, Biswas & Bauer 2010)
2006 Microacontias Daniels, Heideman, Hendricks & Crandall (type species: Acontias lineatus Peters 1879; syn. Lamb, Biswas & Bauer 2010)
Contents: 30 species, of which 20 (66.7%) are endemic.
Endemism: 0% 100%
Other common names:
Typhlosaurus: Blind Legless Skinks
Distribution: S. and E. Africa.
Reported from: Angola, Botswana, Eswatini, Kenya, Mozambique (incl. Bazaruto Archipelago [incl. Benguerua, Santa Carolina]), Namibia, South Africa (Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, North West Province, Northern Cape, Western Cape), Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

Acontias albigularis

White-throated Legless Skink

Weisskehliger Lanzenskink

Hvidstrubet Pilskink

2018 Acontias albigularis Conradie, Busschau & Edwards

Remarks: Previously regarded as a population of breviceps (e.g., Bates, Branch, Bauer, Burger, Marais, Alexander & Villiers 2014).
Distribution: South Africa (Mpumalanga).





Acontias aurantiacus

Golden Blind Legless Skink

Goldener Lanzenskink

Gylden Pilskink

1854 Typhline aurantiaca Peters
Typhlosaurus aurantiacus Peters 1882
Acontias aurantiacus Lamb, Biswas & Bauer 2010

Remarks: Previously included bazarutoensis, carolinensis, fitzsimonsi, and parietalis.
Distribution: Mozambique, Zimbabwe.


Acontias bazarutoensis

Bazaruto Blind Legless Skink

Bazaruto-Lanzenskink

Bazaruto-pilskink

1990 Typhlosaurus aurantiacus bazarutoensis Broadley
Typhlosaurus bazarutoensis Broadley 2008
Acontias aurantiacus bazarutoensis Lamb, Biswas & Bauer 2010

Remarks: Regarded as a subspecies of aurantiacus by some authors (e.g., Lamb, Biswas & Bauer 2010), but treated here as a separate species, following Broadley (2008).
Distribution: Mozambique (incl. Bazaruto Archipelago [incl. Benguerua]).


Acontias bicolor

Zimbabwe Blind Legless Skink

Zimbabwe-Lanzenskink

Zimbabweansk Pilskink

1929 Typhlosaurus bicolor Hewitt
Typhlosaurus cregoi bicolor Broadley 1968
Acontias bicolor Lamb, Biswas & Bauer 2010

Distribution: Zimbabwe.


Acontias breviceps

Short-headed Legless Skink

Kurzkopf-Lanzenskink

Korthovedet Pilskink

1925 Acontias breviceps Essex
Acontias plumbeus breviceps Fitzsimons 1943

Remarks: Previously included the populations now assigned to albigularis and wakkerstroomensis (Conradie, Busschau & Edwards 2018).
Distribution: South Africa (Eastern Cape).


Acontias carolinensis

Santa Carolina Blind Legless Skink

Santa-Carolina-Lanzenskink

Santa Carolina-pilskink

1990 Typhlosaurus aurantiacus carolinensis Broadley
Typhlosaurus carolinensis Broadley 2008
Acontias aurantiacus carolinensis Lamb, Biswas & Bauer 2010

Remarks: Regarded as a subspecies of aurantiacus by some authors (e.g., Lamb, Biswas & Bauer 2010), but treated here as a separate species, following Broadley (2008).
Distribution: Mozambique (Bazaruto Archipelago: Santa Carolina).


Acontias cregoi

Soutpansberg Blind Legless Skink, (Cregoi's Blind Legless Skink)

Soutpansberg-Lanzenskink

Soutpansberg-pilskink

1903 Typhlosaurus cregoi Boulenger
Acontias cregoi Lamb, Biswas & Bauer 2010

Remarks: Previously included bicolor.
Distribution: South Africa (Limpopo).


Acontias fitzsimonsi

Kruger Blind Legless Skink, (Fitzsimons' Legless Skink)

Kruger-Lanzenskink

Kruger-pilskink

1968 Typhlosaurus aurantiacus fitzsimonsi Broadley
Acontias aurantiacus fitzsimonsi Lamb, Biswas & Bauer 2010
Acontias fitzsimonsi Bates, Branch, Bauer, Burger, Marais, Alexander & Villiers [eds.] 2014

Remarks: Validity as a separate species supported by Pietersen, Scholtz & Bastos (2018).
Distribution: South Africa (Limpopo).


Acontias gariepensis

Gariep Blind Legless Skink, Mier Kalahari Legless Skink

Gariep-Lanzenskink

Gariep-pilskink

1941 Typhlosaurus gariepensis Fitzsimons
Acontias gariepensis Lamb, Biswas & Bauer 2010

Distribution: Botswana, Namibia, South Africa (Northern Cape).


Acontias gracilicauda

Thin-tailed Legless Skink

Dünnschwanz-Lanzenskink

Tyndhalet Pilskink

1925 Acontias gracilicauda Essex
Acontias plumbeus gracilicauda Hewitt 1937

Remarks: Previously included namaquensis. Records from Northern Cape are provisionally assigned to occidentalis, following Conradie, Busschau & Edwards (2018).
Distribution: South Africa (Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, North West Province).


Acontias grayi

Graafwater Legless Skink, (Gray's Dwarf Legless Skink)

Graafwater-Lanzenskink

Graafwater-pilskink

1887 Acontias grayi Boulenger

Remarks: Previously regarded as a synonym of lineatus (e.g., Broadley & Greer 1969). Revalidated as a separate species by Lamb, Biswas & Bauer (2010).
Distribution: South Africa (Western Cape).


Acontias jappi

Barotseland Blind Legless Skink

Barotseland-Lanzenskink

Barotseland-pilskink

1968 Typhlosaurus lineatus jappi Broadley
Typhlosaurus jappi Schneider & Bauer 2009
Acontias jappi Lamb, Biswas & Bauer 2010

Distribution: Angola, Zambia.


Acontias kgalagadi

Kgalagadi Legless Skink, (Striped Blind Legless Skink)

Kgalagadi-Lanzenskink

Kgalagadi-pilskink

1887 Typhlosaurus lineatus Boulenger [not Acontias lineatus Peters 1879]
2010 Acontias kgalagadi Lamb, Biswas & Bauer [substitute name for Typhlosaurus lineatus Boulenger 1887]

Remarks: Previously included jappi, richardi, and subtaeniatus.
Distribution: Angola, Botswana, Namibia, South Africa (North West Province, Northern Cape).


Acontias lineatus

Striped Dwarf Legless Skink, (Striped Legless Skink)

Gestreifter Zwerg-Lanzenskink

Stribet Dværgpilskink

1879 Acontias lineatus Peters
Microacontias lineatus Daniels, Heideman, Hendricks & Crandall 2006
1938 Acontias lineatus orangensis Hewitt

Remarks: Previously included grayi and tristis.
Distribution: Namibia, South Africa (Northern Cape, Western Cape).


Acontias lineicauda

Algoa Legless Skink

Schwanzstreifen-Lanzenskink

Halestribet Pilskink

1937 Acontias meleagris lineicauda Hewitt
Acontias lineicauda Lamb, Biswas & Bauer 2010

Distribution: South Africa (Eastern Cape).


Acontias litoralis

Coastal Legless Skink, Coastal Dwarf Legless Skink

Küsten-Lanzenskink

Kyst-pilskink

1969 Acontias litoralis Broadley & Greer
Microacontias litoralis Daniels, Heideman, Hendricks & Crandall 2006

Distribution: South Africa (Northern Cape, Western Cape).


Acontias meleagris

Cape Legless Skink

Westlicher Kap-Lanzenskink

Vestlig Kap-pilskink

1766 Anguis meleagris Linnaeus
Eryx meleagris Daudin 1803
Acontias meleagris Merrem 1820

Remarks: Previously included lineicauda and orientalis. Presence in the Northern Cape needs confirmation (Bates, Branch, Bauer, Burger, Marais, Alexander & Villiers [eds.] 2014).
Distribution: South Africa (Eastern Cape, Western Cape).


Acontias mukwando

Mukwando Legless Skink, Serra da Neve Legless Skink

Mukwando-Lanzenskink

Mukwando-pilskink

2023 Acontias mukwando Marques, Parrinha, Tiutenko, Lopes-Lima, Bauer & Ceríaco 2023

Distribution: Angola.





Acontias namaquensis

Namaqua Legless Skink, Namaqualand Legless Skink

Namaqua-Lanzenskink

Namaqua-pilskink

1938 Acontias plumbeus namaquensis Hewitt
Acontias namaquensis Lamb, Biswas & Bauer 2010

Distribution: South Africa (Northern Cape).


Acontias occidentalis

Western Black Legless Skink, Western Black Limbless Skink, Savanna Legless Skink

Westlicher Schwarzer Lanzenskink

Vestlig Sort Pilskink

1941 Acontias plumbeus occidentalis Fitzsimons
Acontias percivali occidentalis Broadley & Greer 1969
Acontias occidentalis Griffin 2003

Remarks: Lamb, Biswas & Bauer (2010) elevated occidentalis to separate species status, but already Griffin (2003) had treated it as such.
Distribution: Angola, Botswana, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa (Gauteng, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, North West Province, Northern Cape), Zimbabwe.


Acontias orientalis

Eastern Cape Legless Skink

Östlicher Kap-Lanzenskink

Østlig Kap-pilskink

1938 Acontias meleagris orientalis Hewitt
Acontias orientalis Lamb, Biswas & Bauer 2010
1938 Acontias plumbeus tasmani Hewitt (Lamb, Biswas & Bauer 2010)

Distribution: South Africa (Eastern Cape).


Acontias parietalis

Maputaland Legless Skink, Maputaland Blind Legless Skink

Maputaland-Lanzenskink

Maputaland-pilskink

1990 Typhlosaurus aurantiacus parietalis Broadley
Acontias aurantiacus parietalis Lamb, Biswas & Bauer 2010
Acontias parietalis Bates, Branch, Bauer, Burger, Marais, Alexander & Villiers [eds.] 2014

Remarks: Validity as a separate species supported by Pietersen, Scholtz & Bastos (2018).
Distribution: Mozambique, South Africa (KwaZulu-Natal).


Acontias percivali

East African Legless Skink, (Percival's Legless Skink)

Ostafrikanischer Lanzenskink

Østafrikansk Pilskink

1935 Acontias percivali Loveridge
1956 Acontias plumbeus broadleyi Fitzsimons (Broadley & Greer 1969)

Other common names:
percivali: Teita Mountains Limbless Skink
Remarks: Previously included occidentalis. Records from Namibia (e.g., Branch 1998, Broadley & Greer 1969) refer to occidentalis.
Distribution: Kenya, Tanzania.


Acontias plumbeus

Giant Legless Skink

Riesen-Lanzenskink

Kæmpe-pilskink

1848 Acontias plumbeus Bianconi
1854 Acontias niger Peters (Broadley & Greer 1969)
1996 Acontias poecilus Bourquin & Lambiris (syn. Zhao, Verdú-Ricoy, Mohlakoana, Jordaan, Conradie & Heideman 2019)

Other common names:
poecilus: Variable Legless Skink
Distribution: Eswatini, Mozambique, South Africa (Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, Zimbabwe.


Acontias richardi

Limpopo Blind Legless Skink, (Richard's Legless Skink)

Limpopo-Lanzenskink

Limpopo-pilskink

1987 Typhlosaurus lineatus richardi Jacobsen
Acontias richardi Lamb, Biswas & Bauer 2010

Distribution: South Africa (Limpopo).


Acontias rieppeli

Woodbush Legless Skink

Woodbush-Lanzenskink

Woodbush-pilskink

1912 Acontophiops lineatus Sternfeld 1912 [not Acontias lineatus Peters 1879]
2010 Acontias rieppeli Lamb, Biswas & Bauer [substitute name for Acontophiops lineatus Sternfeld 1912]

Distribution: South Africa (Limpopo).


Acontias schmitzi

Kataba Legless Skink

Kataba-Lanzenskink

Kataba-pilskink

2012 Acontias schmitzi Wagner, Broadley & Bauer

Distribution: Zambia.


Acontias subtaeniatus

Stripe-bellied Legless Skink

Bauchstreifen-Lanzenskink

Bugstribet Pilskink

1968 Typhlosaurus lineatus subtaeniatus Broadley
Acontias kgalagadi subtaeniatus Lamb, Biswas & Bauer 2010
Acontias subtaeniatus Chapple & al. 2021

Remarks: Previously regarded as a subspecies of kgalagadi.
Distribution: South Africa (Limpopo).





Acontias tristis

Northern Cape Striped Legless Skink, (Namaqualand Dwarf Legless Skink)

Nördlicher Kap-Lanzenskink

Nordlig Kap-pilskink

1911 Acontias lineatus var. tristis Werner
Acontias tristis Lamb, Biswas & Bauer 2010

Distribution: South Africa (Northern Cape, Western Cape).


Acontias wakkerstroomensis

Wakkerstroom Legless Skink

Wakkerstroom-Lanzenskink

Wakkerstroom-pilskink

2018 Acontias wakkerstroomensis Conradie, Busschau & Edwards

Remarks: Previously regarded as a population of breviceps (e.g., Bates, Branch, Bauer, Burger, Marais, Alexander & Villiers 2014).
Distribution: Eswatini, South Africa (KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga).