Family: Scincidae, Skinks view all from this family

Description 3-5 1/8" (7.6-13.0 cm). Long-tailed; brown, with black dorsolateral stripes; no stripes on back. Small legs, 5 toes. Transparent window in moveable lower eyelid.

Breeding Mates January to August. Clutch of 1-7 eggs is laid almost monthly, April to August, with a maximum of 5 clutches a season. Female abandons nest after laying.

Habitat Humid forests, hardwood hammocks, and forested grasslands, generally where leaf litter is abundant.

Range New Jersey south through Florida, west to c. Texas, north to Nebraska and Missouri.

Discussion Diurnal. Food consists of insects and spiders. Occasional specimens have been observed to bite off their own tails and eat them.