The cat victim

in nature •  6 years ago 

I noticed one of my cats looking very intently at something in a corner. When I got up to see what he was looking at, I found 2 that others were guarding an escapee that had managed to hide himself under the garden tools. I quickly picked it up to see whether it had been badly hurt yet but to my relief, it wasn't injured. If they are badly injured, I put them in the fridge and then freezer as this kills them quickly and painlessly, rather than leaving them to suffer and die slowly over a number of days.

skink3.jpg

Striped skinks (Trachylepis striata) are common around the house and my cats catch them regularly although the hunting doesn't seem to have diminished their numbers. They breed quite prolifically and give birth to live young and are unusual among lizards because wild skinks can become very tame. I hate it when the cats catch them. If you look over this one's left shoulder, you can see old scarring that shows that it has been caught before. It was still in a state of shock, that's why the front legs are folded backwards and I took the opportunity to take some pictures of the beautiful scales and little lizard hands (and elbows).

skink scales.jpg

After a few minutes, it recovered and made its way under some rocks. They are extremely well-camouflaged creatures, as you can see here

skink1.jpg

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Beautiful, up close.

I really like the keeled scales

Our cat "loves" them too! :/

Menaces!

I take it they are harmless.

They are indeed

Es precioso, parece piel de culebra. La verdad que yo no sé diferenciar cual es peligroso y cual es inofensivo. No me atrevería ser defensor tomándolo en mis manos, no sabría que hacer.

If you learn about them, they can be recognised and then you know what to do before touching them

In my childhood, I also saw the lizards many times running on a meadow.
Unfortunately now there are practically none. Every year, animal populations are declining. Many animals disappear almost completely. It is very sad.

:( We still have lizards but fewer frogs

These are very fast animals! I could never catch them!

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They are difficult!

I believe there are certain types of skinks that are harmful to cats.?

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Some are definitely poisonous. Not these, although the cats don't eat them, just torture them :(

I used to corner and catch skinks in arizona, there's quite a variety of colors there.

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Lizards like it hot and dry