Atlas species information

Habitat

• Sand dunes, grasslands, herbfields, scrub, rocky areas including tors, outcrops and scree.
• Tolerates arid areas.
• From the coast up to 1700 m above sea level.
• Diurnal, avid sun-basker.
• Often abundant, particularly in dry rocky areas.
• May over-winter in groups.
• May live on ground, among rock piles, or among low dense vegetation.

Description

• Back grey to light brown, uniform or patterned with various brown stripes (smooth or notched) and/or large grey blotches (often creating a herringbone or checker-board effect).
• Mid-dorsal stripe (stripe along spine) often present, and breaks up or becomes notched or wavy on tail.
• Sides with broad dark-brown stripe above (bordered by thin pale stripes, often notched) and below this grey or grey-brown.
• Throat whitish-grey, often with fine black speckling.
• Belly whitish-grey through to bright yellow, uniform or with fine black speckling.
• Soles of feet creamy-grey, yellow or brown.
• Measures up to 73 mm from snout tip to vent.
• Smoothly-striped animals most common in western Otago/Southland and mid- to northern Canterbury.
• Animals from Central Otago are often especially blotchy in appearance.

Distribution

• From inland Southland through to northern Canterbury.
• Mostly inland but approaches coast on Otago and Banks Peninsula areas.

Notes

• Named after New Zealand herpetologist Charles McCann (1899-1980).
• Notes about 2012-14 cycle of NZ threat classification for Reptiles: (Hitchmough, et al.
• 2012): Very abundant and widespread.
• Responded well to predator control at Macraes.
• Tolerant of dry conditions, live in rocky habitat - i.
• e.
• habitat preferences reduce vulnerability.