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Post by sebbe67 on Sept 3, 2007 0:01:33 GMT
Known only from Mauritius, this species is thought to have become extinct around 1600. The introduction of predatory species to Mauritius is thought to have led to the extirpation of Leiolopisma mauritiana. www.iucnredlist.org/search/details.php/11410/summ |
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Post by Melanie on Sept 3, 2007 3:51:31 GMT
What do you know about the Mauritian Giant Skink,(Didosauris mauritianus)? |
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Post by Melanie on Sept 3, 2007 4:23:17 GMT
Not much! The only information we have is: Giant skink or didosaurus mauritianus was extinct before the 16th century. This, the largest of the skinks, disappeared before the arrival of the Europeans, possibly as a result of rats brought by Arab trading ships. A skeleton of this species can be found in the Mauritian Institute. The Mauritian Giant Skink is not yet included on the list on this website, because we have only placed species that have become extinct since 1500! This was done, because the IUCN (our main information source) recognises species only as recently extinct when it died after the year 1500. When they died out earlier, they are removed from the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. However, we are currently think about including more species that are not named on the IUCN Red Lists, and species that died out before the year 1500! We have to do some more research on those species and we are not yet sure how we will include them, probably on a separate page!  |
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Post by Melanie on Sept 3, 2007 4:24:15 GMT
Prolagus wrote on 9 May 2004
The Mauritian Giant Skink died out between 1600 and 1650,the Portugese and Dutch People kill many Skinks in this Time.
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Post by Melanie on Sept 3, 2007 4:24:50 GMT
Peter wrote on 11 May 2004
Yes some information sources say they have died out between 1600-1650, and other sources say before 1500! So I need to do more information research on this species.
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Post by Melanie on Sept 3, 2007 4:25:56 GMT
Prolagagus wrote on 13 May 2004
Was he real the biggest?
How long was Didosauris and how long the Kapverdian Skink?
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Post by Melanie on Sept 3, 2007 4:26:33 GMT
Peter wrote on 15 May 2004
I don't have any information on that yet, but I think if they write that, and its name is Giant Skink, it seems likely!
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Post by Melanie on Sept 3, 2007 4:27:16 GMT
Sordes wrote on 31 May 2006 There are some very good pictues of the Didosaurus on this page, including pictures of the skeleton as well as a life-sized reconstruction: www.extinct-species.com/But on this page this skink is "only" 60cm long, about as long as Macroscincus. |
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Post by Melanie on Sept 3, 2007 4:27:59 GMT
Another Specialist wrote on 4 June 2007  Fig.5 (left and center). Giant Skink Leiolopisma (Didosaurus) mauritiana Skinks are terrestrial reptiles with often disproportion ally small limbs. What was perhaps the world’s largest skink once occurred on Mauritius possibly reaching 500mm in length. It was described from Mare aux Songes material and characters exhibited in its teeth indicate that it was herbivorous perhaps also feeding on fruits. Surprisingly, this animal was not mentioned in any early account and may have been an early victim of rats. www.naturalis.nl/asp/page.asp?alias=naturalis.nl&view=naturalis.nl&id=i000256&frameurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.natura lis.nl%2Fget%3Fsite%3Dnaturalis.nl%26view%3Dnaturalis.nl%26id%3Di001200%26logId%3Dl000024%26execute%3Dshowsingleitem tinyurl.com/396oxo |
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Post by another specialist on Sept 3, 2007 8:06:32 GMT
Using ancient and recent DNA to explore relationships of extinct and endangered Leiolopisma skinks (Reptilia: Scincidae) in the Mascarene islands. Austin JJ, Arnold EN. Department of Zoology, Natural History Museum, Cromwell Rd., London SW7 5BD, UK. Phylogenetic analysis, using 1455 bp of recent mtDNA (cytochrome b 714 bp, 12S rRNA 376 bp) and nuclear (c-mos 365 bp) sequence from 42 species and 33 genera of Scincidae, confirms Leiolopisma telfairii, now confined to Round island off Mauritius, is a member of the mainly Australasian Eugongylus group of the Lygosominae. Ancient mtDNA (cytochrome b 307 bp, 12S rRNA 376 bp) was also extracted from subfossils of two other Mascarene taxa that are now extinct: the giant L. mauritiana from Mauritius and Leiolopisma sp., known only from fragmentary remains from Réunion. Sequence divergences of 4.2-5.7% show that all three forms were distinct and form a clade. There is restricted evidence that L. mauritiana and L. sp. from Réunion were sister species. Monophyly and relationships suggest Leiolopisma arose from a single transmarine invasion of the oceanic Mascarene islands from Australasia, 5600-7000 km away. This origin is similar to that of Cryptoblepharus skinks and Nactus geckos in the archipelago but contrasts with Phelsuma day geckos, which appear to have arrived from Madagascar where Mascarene Cylindraspis tortoises may also have originated. Diversification of the known species of Leiolopisma occurred from about 2.3-3.4 Mya, probably beginning on Mauritius with later invasion of Réunion. The initial coloniser may have had a relatively large body-size, but L. mauritiana is likely to have become gigantic within the Mascarenes. Other relationships supported by this investigation include the following. Scincines: Pamelaescincus+Janetaescincus, and Androngo (Amphiglossus, Paracontias). Lygosomines: Sphenomorphus group--(Sphenomorphus, Lipinia (Ctenotus, Anomalopus (Eulamprus and Gnypetoscincus))): Egernia group--Egernia (Cyclodomorphus, Tiliqua); Eugongylus group--(Oligosoma, Bassiana. (Lampropholis (Niveoscincus, Carlia))). PMID: 16473026 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE] www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=16473026&dopt=AbstractPlus |
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Post by another specialist on Aug 21, 2008 20:29:59 GMT
Leiolopisma mauritiana also known as Didosaurus maurtianus, was a large (the largest known)species of skink (family Scincidae). It was found only in Mauritius, but became extinct around 1600 probably due to introduced predators. It may have been somewhat fossorial in nature. This is speculative and based on a reconstruction. The Mauritianus giant skink is known from an incomplete skeleton. Didosaurus mauritianus (underlined), the Mauritian Giant Skink, became extinct by 1650. Only a semi - complete specimen is known in addition to some odd bones. (Supposedly, a former director of the Mauritian Institute threw away specimens including some bones of Didosaurus). The remaining skeleton is missing the feet and digits, thus making it impossible for a SENI biometric analysis per se {Schnirel. 2004}. The semi - complete skeleton does have a skull shaped similar to a blue-tongue skink (Genus: Tiliqua). The restoration undertaken by the (Species in Bronze Project), if accurate, gives a SENI value of .06 which would indicate that Didosaurus could have been fossorial or saxicolous in lifestyle. This is further linked by the fact that the closest living relative of Didosaurus (as mentioned by the restorers) is the Round Island Skink: Leiolopisma telfeirii (underlined). The Round Island Skink also gives a SENI value of .06. The Round Island Skink is a species capable of caudal autotomy. This skink is often seen darting in the underbrush or between rocks. An undescribed extinct Leiolopisma from Réunion was closely related, whereas the Round Island skink is a more distantly related surviving species from Mauritius.(Austin & Arnold 2006) en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leiolopisma_mauritiana |
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Post by another specialist on Aug 21, 2008 20:43:09 GMT
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Post by another specialist on Aug 22, 2008 7:46:07 GMT
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Post by another specialist on Oct 23, 2008 14:19:54 GMT
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Post by surroundx on May 4, 2015 7:01:46 GMT
Original description: Günther, A. (1877). Notice of two extinct lizards, formerly inhabiting the Mascarene Islands. Zool. J. Linnean Soc. 13(69): 322-327. [ Abstract] |
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Post by surroundx on May 4, 2015 7:02:00 GMT
Arnold, E. N. (1980). Recently extinct reptile populations from Mauritius and Réunion, Indian Ocean. Journal of Zoology 191(1): 33-47. [ Abstract] |
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Post by Melanie on Feb 17, 2018 10:45:01 GMT
Some more texts on the Mauritius Giant Skink
Jean Vinson and Jean-Michel Vinson: Didosaurus In: Saurian fauna of the Mascarene Islands, 1969, p 236-337
Robert Hoffstetter: Les reptiles subfossiles de l'île Maurice: Les Scincidae, Vol 1, Annales de Paléontologie 35, 1949:45-72
Robert Hoffstetter: Sur les Scincidae fossiles : II - Formes subfossiles de l'Ile Maurice. Bull. Mus. nat. Hist. nat. Paris ;séries 2; 17(1), 1945: 80-86
Alan E. Greer: On the evolution of the giant Cape Verde scincid lizard Macroscincus coctei, Journal of Natural History Volume 10, 1976 - Issue 6, p 691-712
and Hume / Cheke: Lost Land of the Dodo (2010)
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Post by Melanie on Feb 24, 2018 3:02:32 GMT
I've just got Hoffstetter's article from 1949. It gives detailed information on the measurements on the vertebrae bones but Arnold (1980) noticed that these measurements are a composite of material from Leolopisma telfairi and Leiolopisma mauritiana. So the real body length of the Mauritius giant skink is still a matter of speculation.
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