Wildlifeof India
Ristella travancorica
Skinks & Lacertids
Photo: No machine-readable author provided. Shyamal assumed (based on copyright claims). · CC BY-SA 3.0 (May be cropped or resized)
Ristella travancorica
Basic stats
Habitat
Leaf litter and rocks
Range
Western Ghats: Ponmudi Hills and Tirunelveli Hills
Clutch size
2 eggs
Size
Head and body about 3.8cm
The Travancore cat skink, or Travancore ristella, is a skink endemic to the Western Ghats of India, found in the Ponmudi Hills and the Tirunelveli Hills. From snout to vent it measures about 3.8 cm. The ear opening is not or only slightly larger than the nostril, the back scales are sharply two-keeled, and there are 24, rarely 26, scales around the middle of the body (Wikipedia, general species account).
Egg-laying coincides with the south-west monsoon. Adult females lay clutches of two eggs under dead leaves and rocks, each egg about 11 mm by 5–6 mm.
Quick answers
- What habitat does the Ristella travancorica live in?
- Leaf litter and rocks
- Where is the Ristella travancorica found?
- Western Ghats: Ponmudi Hills and Tirunelveli Hills
- How many eggs does the Ristella travancorica lay?
- 2 eggs
- How big is the Ristella travancorica?
- Head and body about 3.8cm