Classification

 

 Domain: Eukarya

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Class: Reptilia

Order: Squamata

Family: Scincidae

Genus: Emoia

Species: Emoia cyanura

Eukarya: Eukaryotes arose from prokaryotic organisms, and all organisms in this domain have eukaryotic cells present which are membranous organelles.  Unicellular, colonial, and multicellular organisms can be found, and our species Emoia cyanura is a multicellular organism.

Animalia:  Members of this class are all multicellular as well as heterotrophs meaning that an organism relies on other organisms for nutrition either directly or indirectly.  Members of this kingdom also lack ridged cell walls, and have bodies made up of tissues, with the exception of sponges.

Chordata:  Members of this phylum are defined as having a notochord during some growth period of their life.  The notochord extends the length of the body and helps in locomotion and to add support and stiffness to the body.  Chordates have bilateral symmetry, three germ layers, and develop a tail that protrudes past the anus at some point in their life cycle (Animal Diversity Web).

Reptilia:  The defining characteristic for the members of this class is they are amniotes, or in other words the eggs they produce are resistant to environmental problems.  Fertilization of these eggs takes place inside the female which truly separates them from amphibians.  Reptilia also have the common characteristic of epidermal scales across their body (Animal Diversity Web).

Squamata: This order is made up of all lizards and snakes which are again related by epidermal scales/shields across their bodies.  Another defining characteristic of this order is the presence of movable quadrate bones allowing them to open their mouth extremely wide to eat prey that can be larger than them (Encyclopedia of Life).

Scincidae:  This is the family for skinks who are characterized by having shiny, smooth scales and reductions in their limb size. 

Emoia cyanura: The common name for this species is the copper-tailed skink.

              

                        

                                    

                                                 

                                                              

                                                                            

                                                                                        

                                                                                                                     Picture created by: Jacob Dallas

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