Meet the Five-Lined Skink

The common five lined skink (Plestiodon fasciatus) is a small lizard often found under rocks and in moist habitats, you may even find one in your backyard or on your porch. This skink is very recognizable in its younger form, having an eye-catching blue tail until adulthood. This species eats insects and spiders, millipedes, crickets, grasshoppers, and sometimes they even consume smaller vertebrates. These skinks spend most of their time laying under rocks and moist cover or basking in the sun. This skink is hunted by a plethora of predators, and in order to successfully evade these creatures, it often stays near crevices to escape into. In dire situations, the skink is able to disconnect its tail. This species helps to maintain the food chain by serving as a predator to insect species and as prey to larger mammals and birds. To learn more about the common five lined skink: https://animalia.bio/american-five-lined-skink?taxonomy=16