Plestiodon obtusirostris
Southern Prairie Skink

Rare. Brownish, thinly-built many-lined skink. Dark lateral stripe bordered above and below with light stripes. Scales smooth and shiny. Postnasal scale absent. Juveniles with bright blue tail. Species account on iNaturalist

Arkansas Game & Fish Commission
Species of Greatest Conservation Need

Arkansas Herpetological Atlas 2019

This species is represented by 21 records from 8 sources: 8 museum (), 0 literature (), 0 research (), and 4 observation (), with 9 additional Trauth et al. (2004) locality points remaining unsourced (). It has been museum vouchered for 3 of 75 counties (), with 3 additional counties having other forms of reported occurrence (). Years of collection range from 1897 to present.

In recent years, this species has been confirmed from Ft. Chaffee, Sebastian County, and Conway, Faulkner County, suggesting it may occupy relic prairie habitats along the Arkansas Valley. Occurrences in southwest Arkansas are sourced to Ball (1980), but currently symbolized as Trauth et al. (2004) locality points until this literature source can be obtained. While no associated voucher specimens from Ball (1980) have been located in available digital catalogs, credence comes from records from nearby counties in Texas (Dixon, 2013) and Caddo Parish, Louisiana (Boundy and Carr, 2017). Occurrence on Rich Mountain, Polk County, is considered historic (NLU 13156-13157 from 1965 and NLU 13089 from 1967). Trauth et al. (2004) reported an anecdotal observation at Devil’s Den State Park, Washington County, but confirmation is warranted. Occurrence in northwest Arkansas cannot be fully discounted, although recent surveys in suitable prairie-like habitats have failed to produce any specimens (J. D. Willson, pers. comm.).