Blue-Tongued Skink

Tiliqua scincoides

Range: Woodlands of Australia and New Guinea

Habitat: Woodland habitats, prefer less arid habitats with plenty of ground cover.

Diet: These omnivores feed on small insects, vegetation, and snails.

Lifespan: They can live up to 15 years in the wild and over 20 years in human care.

Blueberry: Blueberry hatched at an educational facility and came to Turtle Bay in October of 2023.

Fun Facts:

• The main predators of blue-tongued skinks are predatory birds like falcons, hawks, Laughing Kookaburra, and giant snakes.

• Surprise! That bright blue tongue is quite striking. When threatened, they flatten it out wide and make their body big as they hiss loudly, hoping a predator may think twice.

• These skinks have the ability to drop their tail when threatened, and the wiggling segment distracts the predator so the skink can scurry away. The tail will grow back.

• A Skink’s overlapping scales help prevent soil from getting stuck between scales as they move and dig.

• Blue-tongued skinks have strong jaws that crush snail shells and beetles.

• Skinks are Ovoviviparous. Eggs are incubated inside the mother and lack a hard shell. Once the incubation is complete, the babies will hatch immediately after being laid from the female.

• The Aussies really like the Blue-tongued skink because they eat all the pests in their gardens and are harmless to humans.