Skinks & Anole / Achi'ak
Document Actions
Skinks & Anole / Achi'ak
Curious Skink, Carlia fusca.
Temporary photo by Scott Vogt.
It would be difficult to walk anywhere on Guam without seeing an "achi'ak". These quick little lizards are everywhere. Like snakes, these lizards have scales that are arranged in neat rows. They are also cold-blooded. This means that their body temperature is the same as the temperature of their surroundings. They are often seen laying in the sun on rocks and logs.
Skinks and anoles rely on their speed to catch insects or escape predators. If caught by the tail, some lizards can run away leaving the tail behind which can be regrown. Birds (especially chickens), brown tree snakes, and rats feed on lizards.
There are seven different species of skinks and one species of anole on Guam, all called "achi'ak" in Chamoru. The most common kinds, the curious skink and the anole, were accidentally brought to the island by humans within the last 50 years. The curious skink is uniformly brown. The anole is able to change its color from green to brown. Male anoles have a colorful pink flap of skin under the chin called a dewlap. This is displayed when courting females or defending their territory from other males.
Most of the native species of skinks are more colorful than the curious skink. Unfortunately, they have either been displaced by the curious skink or have fallen prey to introduced predators, such as the brown tree snake, and are now uncommon or extinct on Guam. Most of these are still present on Cocos Island, the only remaining refuge from predators or introduced species. The blue-tailed skink is one native that is still holding out on Guam. The young and females of this species have blue tales but adult males are entirely brown.
Some skinks like the curious skink, live on the ground, but others like the anole live on trees.
Guam Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Strategy, 9/27/2005
