The Solomon Islands prehensile-tailed skink Corucia zebrata is a herbivorous, arboreal species, well known amongst the Indigenous people. This reptile is opportunistically hunted as a source of protein amongst forest dependent communities. It is also well known amongst wildlife collectors, as it is heavily traded in the live pet trade. The CITES database shows this species was the reptile most exported from the Solomon Islands between 2000 and 2020. The prehensile-tailed skink is the largest of the arboreal skinks, and is a nationally recognized endemic animal, featured on the Solomon Islands fifty dollar note, along with the endemic Solomon tree dragon Hypsilurus macrolepsis.
Indigenous knowledge of the world’s largest arboreal skink, Corucia zebrata, on the Solomon Islands
Indigenous knowledge of the world’s largest arboreal skink, Corucia zebrata, on the Solomon Islands