Ctenotus essingtonii

Ctenotus essingtonii
Conservation status
	; Least Concern (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Suborder:	Scinciformata
Infraorder:	Scincomorpha
Family:	Sphenomorphidae
Genus:	Ctenotus
Species:	C. essingtonii
Binomial name
	Ctenotus essingtonii; (Gray, 1842)
Synonyms
	Tiliqua essingtonii; Gray, 1842; Lygosoma (Sphenomorphus) essingtonii; — Glauert, 1960; Ctenotus essingtoni; — Storr, 1981;

Last updated September 29, 2025

Ctenotus essingtonii, also known commonly as Essington's ctenotus and the lowlands plain-backed ctenotus, is a species of skink, a lizard in the family Scincidae. The species is endemic to the Northern Territory in Australia.^[2]

Etymology

The specific name, essingtonii, refers to the locality Port Essington, Australia.^[3]

Geographic range

C. essingtonii is found in the northern portion of the Northern Territory, including the Tiwi Islands.^[1]

Habitat

The preferred natural habitat of C. essingtonii is forest.^[1]

Description

C. essingtonii may attain a snout-to-vent length (SVL) of 6.5 cm (2.6 in). It has five toes on each of its four feet. It is slender, with 26 scale rows at midbody.^[2]

Reproduction

Sexually mature individuals of C. essingtonii breed during the dry season.^[1] The species is oviparous.^[2]

References

1 2 3 4 Fenner, A.; Gillespie, G.; Greenlees, M.; McDonald, P.; Woinarski, J.C.Z.; Cogger, H. (2018). "Ctenotus essingtonii ". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2018 e.T109463315A109463324. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-1.RLTS.T109463315A109463324.en . Retrieved 18 November 2021.
1 2 3 4 Ctenotus essingtonii at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database . Accessed 22 March 2015.
↑ Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Ctenotus essingtonii, p. 86).

Cogger HG (2014). Reptiles and Amphibians of Australia, Seventh Edition. Clayton, Victoria, Australia: CSIRO Publishing. xxx + 1,033 pp. ISBN 978-0643100350.
Gray JE (1842). "Description of some hitherto unrecorded species of Australian Reptiles and Batrachians". Zoological Miscellany2: 51–57. (Tiliqua essingtonii, new species, pp. 51–52).
Storr GM, Smith LA, Johnstone RE (1999). Lizards of Western Australia. I. Skinks, Revised Edition. Perth: Western Australian Museum. 291 pp. ISBN 978-0730726562.
Wilson S, Swan G (2013). A Complete Guide to Reptiles of Australia, Fourth Edition. Sydney: New Holland Publishers. 522 pp. ISBN 978-1921517280.

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[iucn_status_18_November_2021-1] 1 2 3 4 Fenner, A.; Gillespie, G.; Greenlees, M.; McDonald, P.; Woinarski, J.C.Z.; Cogger, H. (2018). "Ctenotus essingtonii ". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2018 e.T109463315A109463324. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-1.RLTS.T109463315A109463324.en . Retrieved 18 November 2021.

[RDB-2] 1 2 3 4 Ctenotus essingtonii at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database . Accessed 22 March 2015.

[3] Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Ctenotus essingtonii, p. 86).

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