Red List of South African Species

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Least Concern (LC)
Assessors: Werner Conradie Aaron Bauer
Contributors: Josh Weeber
Facilitators: Graham Alexander Krystal Tolley
Reviewers: John Measey Alex Rebelo Nicolas Telford

Rationale (Changed due to Same category and criteria)

Relatively widespread and common and not subject to major threats throughout most of its range and is therefore assessed as Least Concern.

Distribution

Endemic to the eastern parts of the Western Cape and most of the Eastern Cape, South Africa (Bates et al. 2014), with an extent of occurrence of ca 139,786 km2. There is an apparently isolated subpopulation at Xukulu in the eastern Transkei (Broadley and Greer 1969). An old literature record from the southern Northern Cape Province needs to be verified. Records from the coastal regions around Oysterbay, Port Elizabeth, Port Alfred and East London may represent Acontias lineicauda and need to be verified. 

Population trend

Trend

The population is inferred to be stable.

Threats

There are no major threats to this species.

Uses and trade

Not known to be utilized or traded in any way.

Conservation

The range coincides with some protected areas. No conservation actions are recommended.

References 

[@electronic{181632,
 address = {www.iucnredlist.org},
 author = {IUCN},
 title = {The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2018-2},
 year = {2018}
}
,@book{612,
 address = {Pretoria},
 author = {Bates, M.F., Branch, W.R., Bauer, A.M., Burger, M., Marais, J., Alexander, G.J. and de Villiers, M.S.},
 publisher = {Suricata 1. South African National Biodiversity Institute},
 title = {Atlas and Red List of the Reptiles of South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland},
 year = {2014}
}
,@article{41230,
 author = {Lamb, T., Biswas, S. and Bauer, A.M.},
 journal = {Zootaxa},
 pages = {33--46},
 title = {A phylogenetic reassessment of African fossorial skinks in the subfamily Acontinae (Squamata: Scincidae): evidence for parallelism and polyphyly},
 volume = {2657},
 year = {2010}
}
,@article{41230,
 author = {Daniels, S.R., Heideman, N., Hendricks, M. and Wilson, B.},
 journal = {Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution},
 pages = {315--323},
 title = {A molecular phylogeny for the South African limbless lizard taxa of the subfamily Acontinae (Sauria: Scincidae) with special emphasis on relationships within <i>Acontias</i>},
 volume = {24},
 year = {2002}
}
,@article{41230,
 author = {Daniels, S.R., Heideman, N.J.L., Hendricks, M.G.J. and Crandall, K.A.},
 journal = {Zoologica Scripta},
 number = {4},
 pages = {353--362},
 title = {Taxonomic subdivisions within the fossorial skink subfamily Acontinae (Squamata: Scincidae) reconsidered: a multilocus perspective},
 volume = {35},
 year = {2006}
}
,@article{44974254,
 author = {Broadley, D.G. and Greer, A.E.},
 journal = {Arnoldia (Rhodesia)},
 pages = {1--27},
 title = {A revision of the genus <i>Acontias</i> Cuvier (Sauria: Scincidae)},
 volume = {4},
 year = {1969}
}
,@article{44974868,
 author = {Daniels, S.R., Heideman, N., Hendricks, M.G.J., Mokone, M.E. and Crandall, K.A.},
 journal = {Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution},
 pages = {645--654},
 title = {Unraveling evolutionary lineages in the limbless fossorial skink genus <i>Acontias</i>: are subspecies equivalent systematic units?},
 volume = {34},
 year = {2005}
}
,@article{44974868,
 author = {Daniels, S.R., Heideman, N.J.L. and Hendricks, M.G.J.},
 journal = {Zoologica Scripta},
 number = {5},
 pages = {449--463},
 title = {Examination of evolutionary relationships in the Cape fossorial skink species complex (Acontinae: <i>Acontias meleagris meleagris</i>) reveals the presence of five cryptic lineages},
 volume = {38},
 year = {2009}
}
,@article{44974868,
 author = {Engelbrecht, H.M., Van Niekerk, A., Heideman, N.J.L. and Daniels, S.R},
 journal = {Journal of Biogeography },
 pages = {492--506},
 title = {Tracking the impact of Pliocene/Pleistocene sea level and climatic oscillations on the cladogenesis of the Cape legless skink, <i>Acontias meleagris</i> species complex, in South Africa.},
 volume = {40},
 year = {2013}
}
,]
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