Adaptation

 

Emoia cyanura have adapted to their environment in order to increase survival and fit their habitat in a few ways. One adaption is that they have adapted their tail color to allow them to blend into their typically brown sand or dirt colored habitat, which is common amoung lizards (Brown 1991). This allows them to be more hidden from predators, but also provides them with the camouflage needed to hunt their prey, typically arthropods and insects.

Emoia cyanura copper-tailed copper-striped skink

They have also evolved their thermal sensitivity to allow them to withstand the higher temperatures in their habitat (McElroy 2014). The Emoia impar has adapted opposite, in that they can withstand less heat, which is beneficial because they prefer cooler, shaded habitats anyway. As a result of this cooler thermal temperature Emoia impar are able to run faster than Emoia cyanura. Like almost all skink, with the exception of a few that have reduced limbs, Emoia cyanura are motile via two fore-libs and two hind-limbs.           

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