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Taper-tailed West Coast Slider (Murchison River) (Lerista humphriesi)

The taper-tailed West Coast slider is a completely limbless skink known from a restricted part of Western Australia’s Midwest, around the Murchison River area. Its precise habitat and ecology are poorly documented, so works in the known range warrant careful assessment. It is listed as DBCA Priority 3 in WA and has no national listing.

Conservation status

Western Australia, WA Threatened and Priority Fauna List: Priority 3.

Seasonal planning

Seasonal activity and breeding information are not known for this species. Use the row below as a general planning reminder, not as a species-specific activity calendar.

Breeding: Oviparous; timing is not recorded.

Activity: Seasonal activity and detectability are not recorded.

No months are assigned to species activity periods because seasonal information is not available.

  • Survey and works planning: General planning window only. Species-specific activity, breeding or detectability months are not known.

Identification: Appearance and size

Use the diagnostic characters below to guide identification, and seek expert confirmation where needed.

This is a skink with no trace of forelimbs or hindlimbs. The eye is covered by a transparent ocular scale, with no eyelid. No body-size measurements are recorded.

  • The taxonomic key records five upper labials, one loreal and one plus two temporals.
  • The key also records no supraciliary.

Identification: Similar species

Field comparisons with similar species are not documented. Limblessness alone is not sufficient for identification; use the full diagnostic characters and consult a suitably experienced herpetologist if uncertain.

Identification: Field signs

Species-specific tracks, burrows and other field signs have not been described. As general skink survey practice, record any animal or sign in place and photograph it before attempting further examination.

Distribution: Known range

Known records are concentrated in a small part of Western Australia. Occurrence data indicate known records, not proof of absence elsewhere.

The Reptile Database gives the distribution as Western Australia and records the type locality as Gee Gie Outcamp, 21 miles NNW of Murchison House. Atlas of Living Australia records show 26 Western Australian records in 11 distinct 0.1 degree locations, between latitude 27.6°S and 26.9°S and longitude 114.1°E and 114.5°E.

Distribution: WA region and status

The DBCA list flags the Midwest region. The taxon is Priority 3 on the WA list, described as poorly known, known from several locations and not under imminent threat. This is a DBCA priority category, not a threatened listing under the Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016. No national listing is given.

Habitat: Habitat information

Habitat used by this species has not been documented. Assess the site and its records without assuming that apparently unsuitable or disturbed ground is unoccupied.

Species-specific vegetation, soil, landform and ground-cover associations have not been recorded.

Habitat: Site assessment

For general reptile survey planning, describe the site's soils, surface cover, vegetation and disturbance history. Treat these as site observations, not confirmed habitat preferences for this slider.

Foraging habitat: Diet and foraging

The diet and foraging habitat of this species have not been documented.

Its diet and foraging behaviour cannot be inferred from its classification as a skink.

Foraging habitat: Field precautions

During general reptile surveys, note where an animal is encountered and the ground conditions present. This may inform site assessment but should not be treated as evidence of a species-specific foraging habitat.

Breeding habitat: Known breeding information

The species is egg-laying, but its breeding habitat and timing are not documented.

The species is oviparous. Breeding months, clutch size, egg-laying sites and other details are not recorded.

Breeding habitat: Precaution for works

Do not assume that a particular season or ground type is free of breeding risk. If eggs or a suspected nest site are encountered, pause work in the immediate area and obtain advice from the project ecologist.

Sheltering habitat: Shelter information

Shelter sites for this species have not been reported. The genus is described in taxonomic literature as cryptozoic or fossorial, but this does not establish the slider's specific shelter requirements.

Species-specific burrows, refuges, soil depths and other shelter requirements have not been described.

Sheltering habitat: Search with care

As general practice when searching for small reptiles, inspect accessible surface cover carefully and replace it as found. Avoid extensive digging or destructive searches where there is no approved survey plan.

Threats: Known pressures

Specific threats to this species have not been identified. Its Priority 3 status reflects the DBCA category stated for the taxon.

No taxon-specific threats are recorded. Potential effects of a development should not be presented as documented causes of decline for this species.

Threats: Works risk

Clearing and ground disturbance can affect fauna encountered on a site. As a precaution, check records and survey requirements before works, and brief crews to stop and report any suspected slider rather than handle or relocate it without direction.

Survey methodology: 1. Desktop assessment

The species is poorly known, and information on its detectability is unavailable. Use a cautious, documented survey approach.

Check current DBCA information, project records and occurrence data for the Midwest and the Murchison River area. The atlas records represent known locations, not a complete map of occupancy.

Survey methodology: 2. Site inspection

Have a suitably experienced ecologist inspect the proposed disturbance area. Record the date, conditions, survey coverage, ground and surface features, and any limitations. No species-specific survey season or method has been specified.

Survey methodology: 3. Identification and records

Use the diagnostic characters in the identification section and obtain expert confirmation for uncertain records. Photograph the animal and its immediate setting where this can be done without unnecessary disturbance, and record the location accurately.

Vegetation associations

Source-checked associations and automatically indexed candidates are separated below. An association does not establish site presence, preference or dependence.

No species-specific vegetation association has been indexed or source-checked in this evidence library. This is an evidence gap, not evidence of no association.

Ecosystem associations

Source-checked associations and automatically indexed candidates are separated below. An association does not establish site presence, preference or dependence.

No species-specific ecosystem association has been indexed or source-checked in this evidence library. This is an evidence gap, not evidence of no association.

Soil and substrate associations

Source-checked associations and automatically indexed candidates are separated below. An association does not establish site presence, preference or dependence.

No species-specific soil association has been indexed or source-checked in this evidence library. This is an evidence gap, not evidence of no association.

Water and wetland associations

Source-checked associations and automatically indexed candidates are separated below. An association does not establish site presence, preference or dependence.

No species-specific water association has been indexed or source-checked in this evidence library. This is an evidence gap, not evidence of no association.

Fauna records and mapped habitat: Not yet analysed

Record locations can be overlaid with mapping, but record frequency alone does not measure habitat preference. No species is excluded from desktop assessments by this analysis.

No quality-controlled record-to-map analysis has been completed for this species. The existing generalised distribution dots and indicative range polygons have not been treated as precise occurrence coordinates.

A defensible run needs dated, independently attributable records, coordinate uncertainty, duplicate and captive-record checks, layer versions and regional scope. Preference and absence require additional survey-effort and detection evidence.

Habitat limitations and contrary evidence: No supported exclusion recorded

Not recorded is not the same as cannot occur. Low suitability, resident habitat, breeding habitat and occasional movement are different conclusions.

This library has not established a vegetation, ecosystem or soil-type exclusion for this species. This does not mean all habitat is suitable; the evidence needed to justify an exclusion has not been assembled.

Habitat limitations and contrary evidence: Before using a negative association

  • Confirm the taxon, geographic region, life stage and habitat function covered by the evidence.
  • Check survey methods, season, repeated effort and detectability before interpreting non-detection.
  • Investigate credible contradictory records and microhabitats absent from broad mapping.
  • Do not convert a missing map class, low record count or failed data request into species absence.

Before habitat disturbance: 1. Review and plan

Plan works around uncertainty in the species' distribution and ecology, particularly in the Midwest records area.

Review DBCA status, available records, project approvals and any applicable survey requirements before clearing. Map the work footprint and identify areas where disturbance can be avoided or reduced.

Before habitat disturbance: 2. Brief the crew

Brief supervisors and clearing crews on the possibility of encountering a small, limbless skink, the need to stop work and report a suspected animal, and the project procedure for contacting the ecologist. Site features should not be described as known habitat unless they are confirmed.

During habitat disturbance: 1. Work carefully

Use active checks and a clear stop-work response if a suspected individual is found.

Keep disturbance within the approved footprint and proceed in accordance with the project fauna management plan. Avoid unnecessary turning, breaking or removal of ground cover outside the work area.

During habitat disturbance: 2. Respond to an encounter

Stop work in the immediate area, protect the animal from traffic or machinery, and notify the site ecologist. Do not handle, capture or relocate it unless this is authorised and undertaken by an appropriately qualified person under the relevant procedures.

After habitat disturbance: 1. Document

Record what occurred and use the information to guide any remaining works.

Record any encounter, location, photographs, identification confidence, work activity and response. Report findings through the project and regulatory pathways that apply.

After habitat disturbance: 2. Review remaining works

Have the ecologist review whether the encounter changes the risk assessment or work method. Maintain any agreed exclusion or protection measures until the responsible ecologist confirms they can be removed.

Rehabilitation actions: 1. Restore disturbed areas

Species-specific rehabilitation requirements have not been documented. Rehabilitation should focus on restoring the approved site design without making unsupported claims about habitat suitability.

Rehabilitate disturbed ground in line with the approved rehabilitation plan, using suitable locally appropriate materials and methods where specified by that plan.

Rehabilitation actions: 2. Monitor and record

Record rehabilitation actions and site condition. Revegetation or surface-cover restoration does not demonstrate that habitat for the taper-tailed West Coast slider has been restored, because its habitat requirements are not recorded.

Sources