Bronze-backed Skink

This is a Mabuya becuase it has 2 frontoparietal plates. S. cherriei will have 1 plate.

No hurry, I am going to the Pizzeria first, uncamouflaged ;-)...

No, yours is an Ameiva and this is for sure a skink.

Pam, you got a great picture of it, considering that he just poke out for a second, I will look for it and post picture. bayucca, I am wondering if it is like the "Mature" one that lives in the wood pile, 8 meters from where Pam found it?? http://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/37266210

Pam and Gilma! If you have any other picture of this one, please, post it. I am still not convinced about the ID: Sphenomorphus cherriei or Mabuya unimarginata. I think there are also not all of them on the web correctly IDed. I suggest that you leave it "unknown" for a little moment, until we have more pictures or a real expert opinion. I asked Juan to check some of his IDs, or better: explain me the difference between the 2 species, but did not get any answer until now...

Do you have another picture of that one??

I think it is Sphenomorphus cherriei, not Mabuya unimarginata. http://naturecloseups.com/posts/subjects/skinks http://www.wildherps.com/species/S.cherriei.html http://www.fotoreiseberichte.de/costarica/fotos/tiere/cr_04_600gr.jpg http://www.bio.davidson.edu/dorcas/research/Field%20trips/Tortuguero%202004%20website/sphenomorphus%20cherriei.htm http://eol.org/pages/790586/overview But what about this one? http://www.flickr.com/photos/onemoreshotrog/5946138906/ I asked Juan to explain me the difference between the 2... Another Mabuya... http://smg.photobucket.com/user/kcmatt/media/Costa%20Rica%202012/SkinkMayubaunimarginata-MAntonioCostaRica6-10-12facecropcol.jpg.html So I am no more sure about it...

None of the skinks in the Genus Ablepharus are found in the Americas....