Wildlifeof Sri Lanka
Gans' Nessia
Skinks & Lacertids
Photo: Arabella Willing · CC BY 4.0 (May be cropped or resized)
Nessia gansi
Basic stats
Habitat
Damp forest and home gardens (loose soil, leaf debris, near rubbish heaps), lowland wet zone up to 100m
Range
Endemic to Sri Lanka: Ambalangoda, Kanneliya, Kottawa, Imaduwa
Gans' nessia, or Gans's three-toed snake skink, is endemic to Sri Lanka and restricted to the lowland wet zone up to 100 m, at Ambalangoda, Kanneliya Forest Reserve, Kottawa and Imaduwa. It is named for the herpetologist Carl Gans. It has four limbs with three digits each and an acutely pointed snout. The back is dark brown, each scale with a distinct dark spot at its rear, and the belly dusky brown (Wikipedia, general species account).
It prefers damp forests or home gardens, where it is found in loose soil and leaf debris close to rubbish heaps. It is oviparous. No national Red List category was found.
Quick answers
- What habitat does the Gans' Nessia live in?
- Damp forest and home gardens (loose soil, leaf debris, near rubbish heaps), lowland wet zone up to 100m
- Where is the Gans' Nessia found?
- Endemic to Sri Lanka: Ambalangoda, Kanneliya, Kottawa, Imaduwa