NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Copper-Tailed Skink
Ctenotus taeniolatus (White, 1790)
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
Ctenotus taeniolatus, the copper-tailed ctenotus or copper-tailed skink, is a species of medium-sized skink found commonly along the eastern seaboard of Australia and throughout the country generally. Striped skinks are found in open bushland and heathland. They can grow to be 30 cm long.
Striped skinks are olive brown on top with stripes of dark brown and white running from head to tail. They have a black, white-edged vertebral band and a white dorsolateral band edged in black. The sides are dark brown and spotted with white.
Like most skinks, they eat mainly small invertebrates like insects and worms. They live in rocky and sandy areas, seeking sunny basking spots with cover nearby so they can dart away from predators.
Wikipedia contributors, Ctenotus taeniolatus; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T07:39:52.852931+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Ctenotus taeniolatus (White, 1790)
- Name authority
- (White, 1790)
- Common name
- Copper-Tailed Skink
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Reptilia
- Order
- Squamata
- Family
- Scincidae
- Genus
- Ctenotus
- Extinction status
- Not supplied by this source
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classReptilia Laurenti, 1768
- orderSquamata Oppel, 1811
- suborderAutarchoglossa
- familyScincidae
- subfamilySphenomorphinae
- genusCtenotus
- speciesCtenotus taeniolatus (White, 1790)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Ctenotus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Airlie Island CtenotusCtenotus angusticeps Storr, 1988 | ScincidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Ariadna's CtenotusCtenotus ariadnae Storr, 1969 | ScincidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Jabiluka CtenotusCtenotus arnhemensis Storr, 1981 | ScincidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Stony Downs CtenotusCtenotus astarte Czechura, 1986 | ScincidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Arnhem Striped CtenotusCtenotus astictus Horner, 1995 | ScincidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Short-clawed CtenotusCtenotus brachyonyx Storr, 1971 | ScincidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Capricorn CtenotusCtenotus capricorni Storr, 1981 | ScincidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Chain-striped South-west CtenotusCtenotus catenifer Storr, 1974 | ScincidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Brown-backed CtenotusCtenotus coggeri Sadlier, 1985 | ScincidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Buff-tailed Finesnout CtenotusCtenotus colletti (Boulenger, 1896) | ScincidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Darling Range South-west CtenotusCtenotus delli Storr, 1974 | ScincidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Fine Side-lined CtenotusCtenotus dux Storr, 1969 | ScincidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Scincus multilineatus Lesson, 1830 Lesson, 1830 | synonym |
| Ctenotus miowera Wells & Wellington, 1985 Wells & Wellington, 1985 | synonym |
| Lacerta taeniolata White, 1790 White, 1790 | ambiguous synonym |
| Scincus decemlineatus Lacépède, 1804 Lacépède, 1804 | synonym |
| Scincus undecimstriatus Kuhl, 1820 Kuhl, 1820 | ambiguous synonym |
| Scincus octolineatus Daudin, 1802 Daudin, 1802 | synonym |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/species?genus=Ctenotus&species=taeniolatus Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:327NP. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.