Prickly forest skink
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The prickly skink, or prickly forest skink (Gnypetoscincus queenslandiae), is a morphologically and genetically distinctive species of skink endemic to rainforests of the Wet Tropics of Queensland World Heritage Area, in north-eastern Australia. Unlike most small skinks, which have smooth scales, this species has rough, ridged and pointed scales. These keeled scales may be an adaptation to its high-rainfall habitat, to its microhabitat in rotting logs, or to camouflage it when moving through forest leaf-litter.
Taxonomy
This species is a member of the Australian "Sphenomorphid" group of skinks (family Scincidae), which includes such genera as Ctenotus, Anomalopus and Eulamprus.<ref name="OConnor & Moritz 2003">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name="Skinner et al. 2013">{{cite journal|last1=Skinner|first1=Adam|last2=Hutchinson|first2=Mark N.|last3=Lee|first3=Michael S.Y.|title=Phylogeny and divergence times of Australian Sphenomorphus group skinks (Scincidae, Squamata)|journal=Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution|date=Dec 2013|volume=69|issue=3|pages=906–918 |doi=10.1016/j.ympev.2013.06.014