NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Arabian Sand Skink
Scincus mitranus Anderson, 1871
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
The eastern skink (Scincus mitranus), also known commonly as the Arabian sand skink and the eastern sandfish, is a species of lizard in the subfamily Scincinae of the family Scincidae (skinks). The species is native to the deserts and arid lands of the Arabian Peninsula north to Western Iran. Truly at home within fine, loosely-grained desert sand, this skink is known for resting while completely buried, keeping only its nostrils, and possibly part of its face, above ground for oxygen. In addition to ambushing passing invertebrate prey (likewise with only its nose or face exposed), S. mitranus will readily "dive" into the sand at the first sign of danger, appearing to "swim" through the dunes as it hastily buries itself deeper to hide. Its naturally glossy, shiny and smooth scales – typical of the skink family, in general – enable quick digging and rapid movement within the fine, often very hot, substrate, with no external injury or irritation to its body. This behavior has earned S. mitranus its common names of "sandfish" and "sand skink".
Wikipedia contributors, Eastern skink; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T08:13:35.121806+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Scincus mitranus Anderson, 1871
- Name authority
- Anderson, 1871
- Common name
- Arabian Sand Skink
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Reptilia
- Order
- Squamata
- Family
- Scincidae
- Genus
- Scincus
- 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
- subfamilyScincinae
- genusScincus
- speciesScincus mitranus Anderson, 1871
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Scincus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Scincus hemprichii Wiegmann, 1837 | ScincidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Sandfish SkinkScincus conirostris Blanford, 1881 | ScincidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Scincus albifasciatus Boulenger, 1890 | ScincidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Sandfish SkinkScincus scincus (Linnaeus, 1758) | 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 arenarius Murray, 1884 Murray, 1884 | synonym |
| Scincus richmondi Haas, 1961 Haas, 1961 | synonym |
| Scincus mitranus mitranus Al-Sadoon, 1988 Al-Sadoon, 1988 | synonym |
| Scincus arabicus Schmidt, 1939 Schmidt, 1939 | synonym |
| Scincus muscatensis Murray, 1886 Murray, 1886 | ambiguous synonym |
| Scincus philbyi Schmidt, 1941 Schmidt, 1941 | 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=Scincus&species=mitranus 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:4VK5S. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.