Reptiles
Western Skink
Plestiodon skiltonianus · also called western skinks
A juvenile western skink darts beneath a fallen log, its bright blue tail trailing behind like a deliberate decoy. If a predator strikes at the flash of colour instead of the body, the skink can simply leave that tail behind and slip away to regrow it later.
Overview
The western skink, Plestiodon skiltonianus, is a smooth-scaled, secretive lizard native to a broad range of habitat across the western United States. Its vivid juvenile tail colouration and effective tail-shedding defense set it apart as one of the more visually distinctive skink species in its range.
A colour that exists to be sacrificed
The western skink’s bright blue juvenile tail isn’t meant to last forever, serving a single practical purpose: giving predators something expendable to grab onto instead of the lizard’s actual body.
Status
Least Concern — widespread and stable across suitable habitat throughout the western United States.
Western Skink: common questions
Why does the young western skink have a blue tail?
A juvenile western skink displays a bright blue tail believed to function as a decoy, drawing predator strikes toward the more expendable tail rather than the lizard's vital body, and this vivid colouration fades as the lizard matures into an adult, generally becoming a duller brown or grey.
Can a western skink regrow its tail after losing it?
Yes, like many skink species, a western skink is capable of shedding a portion of its tail if grabbed by a predator, a defensive strategy that allows the lizard to escape while the detached tail continues moving to distract the attacker, and the tail can partially regrow over time.
Where does the western skink spend most of its time?
A western skink spends much of its time hidden beneath rocks, logs, and leaf litter, generally emerging to forage actively for small insects rather than basking openly for extended periods, a secretive lifestyle that makes the species less frequently seen than its wide distribution might suggest.
Where does the western skink live?
The western skink is native to a broad range of habitats across the western United States, extending from the Pacific coast into parts of the interior, generally favouring areas with adequate moisture and ground cover such as leaf litter, rocks, or logs.