A little depressed
Moderator: Scott Waters
- MadManMoore
- Posts: 37
- Joined: August 4th, 2013, 10:13 pm
- Location: Stansbury Park, UT
A little depressed
Camping this weekend I came upon a western skink. It was in its blue tail phase. I nearly went off a 40 foot cliff for it as it crossed the trail and went to the edge. I had it under my hand, but was trying to be gentle as to not hurt the little guy, but it was lost in the loose rocks and grasses. I will definitely have to put some effort in going again to get another chance and some pics to post. Curious to hear what luck people have had along the Wasatch front with these little guys. The first one I caught came from Idaho.
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- Posts: 513
- Joined: March 6th, 2012, 12:45 pm
- Location: utah
Re: A little depressed
I've only ever seen them out west of the 5 mile pass, along the RR tracks under old railroad ties, been very common in the spring time out there while there is still moisture under the ties. Never seen them in the wasatch mountains near me.
- MadManMoore
- Posts: 37
- Joined: August 4th, 2013, 10:13 pm
- Location: Stansbury Park, UT
Re: A little depressed
Me neither, that is why I was somewhat surprised to see them in the Spanish Fork area. I figured they could live in many places, but you just don't see very many posts with ?them. Anyone else out there have some encounters through the years?
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- Posts: 430
- Joined: June 7th, 2010, 12:59 pm
Re: A little depressed
Skinks are very common throughout most of Utah. They are absent from sections of the northern wasatch in salt lake and davis counties. But are in pretty much all the surrounding areas around there. You arent going to have much luck seeing them on the surface. When they are on the surface they stick to leaf litter. As simpleyork said its easiest to flip them. They are more common in sandy/ gravelly soils. No need to dive off a 40 foot cliff after them. They are usually hiding in burrows once temps are above 80. best to look for them when the soil is moist.
I don't recommend the method my brother and I discovered when we were kids to find them in the oquirrhs which consisted of walking the edges of oak leaf piles and listening for rustling under the leaves and blindly grabbing the leaves with our bare hands hoping to pull out a skink. It worked but that rustling could just have easily come from a rodent with hantavirus or a rattlesnake.
I don't recommend the method my brother and I discovered when we were kids to find them in the oquirrhs which consisted of walking the edges of oak leaf piles and listening for rustling under the leaves and blindly grabbing the leaves with our bare hands hoping to pull out a skink. It worked but that rustling could just have easily come from a rodent with hantavirus or a rattlesnake.
- Bryan Hamilton
- Posts: 1234
- Joined: June 10th, 2010, 9:49 pm
- MadManMoore
- Posts: 37
- Joined: August 4th, 2013, 10:13 pm
- Location: Stansbury Park, UT
Re: A little depressed
Thanks for your feedback. Like you said, they can be in xeric zones as well. Growing, I found one in the City of Rocks area in Idaho that I would say fits that description.
- Bryan Hamilton
- Posts: 1234
- Joined: June 10th, 2010, 9:49 pm
Re: A little depressed
No problem. Even though they are in xeric areas (usually with lots of rock cover), if I really wanted to see skink, I would focus on riparian habitat. These cloudy cool spring days are pretty good conditions for skinks.MadManMoore wrote:Thanks for your feedback. Like you said, they can be in xeric zones as well. Growing, I found one in the City of Rocks area in Idaho that I would say fits that description.
Re: A little depressed
I've only ever seen one in Utah. It was in a riparian area under a log with lots of leaf litter surrounding the log. Something that I'd like to put a little more effort in finding more of too.
Rye
Rye
- Jeremy Westerman
- Posts: 634
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- Location: Utah
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Re: A little depressed
Common in the Oquirrh Mtns out your way, Mad man. Look in Scrub oak or canyon maple leaf pile litter in riparian areas or at least drainages that see seasonal creeks in spring in the Pinyon Juniper habitat. I am sure they are out in the dry rock stuff too, like Bryan said, just much harder to find.