Leaves, twigs, and barks that have fallen to the ground make up leaf litter, and it's home to a wide variety of plants and animals. Most of the tiny animals found in the leaf litter are invertebrates. They are important food source for toads, skinks, and other small amphibians and reptiles that rely on the shelter and moisture provided by the leaf litter. One of the many creatures living in the leaf litter habitats of Palawan is the Palawan Sun Skink ( Eutropis sahulinghangganan ), a newly described species of skink endemic to Palawan. The name Eutropis sahulinghangganan derives from the Tagalog "sa huling" or "sa huli ng" (meaning in the last), and "hangganan" (meaning frontier). Palawan Sun Skink The Palawan Sun Skink inhabits thick coastal forests, mangroves, as well as secondary forests and primary forests up in the mountains. I have seen this skink near the peak of Mount Beaufort at elevations of around 1000 masl, but the population of thi
Of the 12 kinds of skink occurring in Palawan, the Philippine Emerald Tree Skink (Lamprolepis smaragdina philippinica) is one of the most common. This tree-dwelling skink is endemic to the Philippines and is associated with major faunal regions in the Philippines as well as many small and isolated islands throughout the archipelago. In Palawan, they're found anywhere from coconut plantations and mangrove areas on the coast to the hills at the base of the mountains. Philippine Emerald Tree Skink The Philippine Emerald Tree Skink is a lowland species, and it prefers to live around the edges of the woods with lots of sunlight than the inner parts of the forest with thick canopies. It occurs in heavily disturbed habitats as well as residential and agricultural areas. It is not unusual to see this skink around houses in rural areas and sometimes seen entering human dwellings when hunting for food. In coastal areas and coconut plantations, we often see this skink moving around on