Yakka skink
Common name: yakka skink
Scientific name: Egernia rugosa
Family: Scincidae
Conservation status: The yakka skink is listed as Vulnerable in Queensland (Nature Conservation Act 1992) and nationally (Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999). It is ranked as a medium priority under the Department of Environment and Resource Management ‘Back on Track’ species prioritisation framework.
Description
The yakka skink is a large, strongly built skink that grows up to 40cm long. It has an obvious thick tail and the legs and claws are short. The body is reddish-brown, the belly and ventral surfaces are cream to yellowish orange and the throat often has blackish flecks. A broad, dark brown to black stripe extends from the back side of the neck to the tail, and is bordered on either side by a narrow, pale fawn stripe. Individual scales within the stripe can be flecked with dark and medium brown. Mid-body scales are in rows of 26 to 30.
Habitat and distribution
Habitat requirements are poorly known, however the species is known from rocky outcrops, sand plain areas and dense ground vegetation, in association with open dry sclerophyll forest (ironbark) or woodland, brigalow forest and open shrub land. The yakka skink has also been recorded in lancewood forest on coarse gritty soils in the vicinity of low ranges, foothills and undulating terrain with good drainage.
The yakka skink is endemic to Queensland where its distribution is patchy. Isolated populations occur throughout sub-humid to semi-arid areas in the interior of Queensland from St George in the south, to Coen and Cape York Peninsula in the north. In 2002, populations were discovered at Thrushton National Park and Culgoa Floodplain National Park. The majority of populations occur within the Brigalow Belt region.
Behaviour and life history
A terrestrial and mostly diurnal species, the yakka skink is extremely secretive and its presence is usually detected by a frequently used defecation site near the burrow entrance. The species occurs in small colonies within its range and individuals dig deep burrows under and between partly buried rocks or logs, or into old root tracts at the base of remnant stumps.
The yakka skink is an omnivorous species (consumes plant and animal matter) ambushing arthropods and small vertebrates that venture near the burrow entrance.
Members of the Egernia genus bare live young and rarely produce more than six per litter. The breeding season for this species has not been recorded.
Threatening processes
The yakka skink is threatened by habitat loss due to land clearing and thinning operations, inappropriate road side management, removal of woody debris and rocks that provide refuge and predation by feral animals. Inappropriate fire regimes and trampling of burrow systems by stock and feral pigs can have an adverse impact on the skink.
Recovery actions
- Identify key habitat throughout the Queensland Brigalow Belt (QBB) bioregion and priority areas for conservation in local government regions and develop management guidelines to protect these areas on private and state controlled land.
- Negotiate management agreements with landholders that are in line with recommended management guidelines to protect key habitat and priority areas.
- Implement monitoring programs in key habitat and priority conservation areas.
- Protect reptile habitat on the stock route network and shire roadsides and reserves
- Identify research priorities and investigate aspects of the species biology, ecology and population dynamics to inform management.
- Adopt a collaborative approach to reptile conservation and encourage involvement from government agencies, regional Natural Resource Management (NRM) bodies, industry groups, indigenous groups, landholders and the community.
- Deliver education material to raise public awareness of this species and other priority reptile species in Queensland.
What can be done to help this species?
- Conduct field surveys to determine the full extent of the species geographic range and to identify its home range.
- Avoid removing fallen logs, leaf litter and rocks in yakka skink habitat as this disturbs and diminishes refuge sites.
- Become involved in community-based on-ground projects (e.g. fencing remnants to reduce grazing impacts, weed and feral predator control, reptile monitoring and field surveys) and help protect habitat across a suite of land tenures, particularly on non-reserved lands.
- Help protect threatened reptiles in the QBB bioregion by supporting integrated pest management activities which seek to address feral animal threats (e.g. pigs, cats, foxes).
- Report sightings of this and other threatened reptiles of the QBB bioregion to the Department of Environment and Resource Management (DERM) by contacting the WildNet Team (WildNet@derm.qld.gov.au or Ph: 07 3330 5484).
Last reviewed 23 February 2011
Last updated 27 July 2010