Kapitia Skink :: Oligosoma salmo

Bad at Goodbyes :: Episode 027

On today’s show we learn about the Kapitia Skink, a critically endangered reptile native to the west coast of the South Island of Aotearoa New Zealand, roughly 100 miles west of the city of Christchurch.

• (00:05) Intro
• (02:05) Species Information
• (22:12) Citations
• (23:55) Music
• (27:31) Pledge

Research for today’s show was compiled from

• “Arboreal behaviour and habitat use in the Nationally Critical Kapitia Skink (Oligosoma salmo)”. Marcel Kerrigan, Sarah Brill,  Marleen Baling. Perspectives in Biodiversity, Volume 2, pp 11–20. 2024 – https://doi.org/10.34074/pibdiv.002103 
• “Biomimetic fracture model of lizard tail autotomy” Navajit S Baban et al. Science Vol. 375, 770-774 (2022) – https://doi.org/10.1126/science.abh1614 
• IUCN – https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/156730274/156730436 
• “Habitat use and translocation techniques for the critically endangered Kapitia Skink, Oligosoma salmo” Jade Angel Christiansen. Master of Science Thesis, University of Otago 2023 – https://hdl.handle.net/10523/15198 
• New Zealand Threat Classification System 2021 Report – https://nztcs.org.nz/assessments/123980 
• “Origin, diversification, and systematics of the New Zealand skink fauna (Reptilia: Scincidae)” David G. Chapple, Peter A. Ritchie, Charles H. Daughert. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, Volume 52, Issue 2, August 2009, Pages 470-487 – https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ympev.2009.03.021 
• “Rare skinks return to southern home” New Zealand Department of Conservation Media Release. April 2023 – https://www.doc.govt.nz/news/media-releases/2023-media-releases/rare-skinks-return-to-southern-home/ 
• “Sounds of Science” Podcast, Episode 3 with Lynn Adams, May 2019, from the New Zealand Department of Conservation – https://www.doc.govt.nz/news/podcast/sounds-of-science-archive/ 
• “Lost and Found: Taxonomic revision of the speckled skink (Oligosoma infrapunctatum; Reptilia; Scincidae) species complex from New Zealand reveals a potential cryptic extinction, resurrection of two species, and description of three new species.” Zootaxa. 4623. 441-484. 2019. –  http://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4623.3.2
• Wikipedia – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oligosoma_salmo

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A note on accuracy: I strive for it! These episodes are well-researched and built from scholarly sources, hoping to provide an informed and accurate portrait of these species. That said, I’m an ambient musician! I am not an academic and have limited scientific background. I may get things wrong! If you are using this podcast for scholarship of any kind, please see the cited sources and double-check all information.