This skink's distinctive banded stripes gives it its scientific name.
Description: Centralian Blue-tongue Skinks have distinctive orange-brown-to-golden stripes across their back and tail. Their heads are usually pale with dark streaks behind the eyes. Their iconic blue tongue contrasts against its pink mouth when opened to warn off predators.
Diet: Blue-tongue Skinks are omnivores and feed on invertebrates, snails and slugs, flowers and fruit.
In the wild: When threatened, a Blue-tongue Skink will flatten its body, hiss and open its mouth to display the blue tongue to scare the predator away. Predators include snakes, monitors and raptors (birds of prey).
Threats: Land clearing has resulted in habitat loss for this lizard. They are also poached and sold on the illegal pet trade.
Did you Know?
Blue-tongue Skinks have strong jaws to crunch insects and snail shells, but their main defence is to bluff their way out of trouble by opening their mouth wide and showing off their blue tongue.