Voeltzkowia mobydick
Voeltzkowia mobydick is a species of mermaid skink, a lizard in the family Scincidae. In 2012, the species was first described in a paper by French herpetologists Aurélien Miralles, Miguel Vences, and their colleagues.
Description
Mermaid skinks have only forelimbs, no hind limbs, hence the common name "mermaid skink". This species's forelimbs are shaped like flippers. The scientific name Voeltzkowia mobydick consists of the pre-existing parent genus Voeltzkowia, and the name of the white sperm whale from the 1851 novel Moby-Dick by Herman Melville. The species name is appropriate because whales have no hind limbs, only forelimbs shaped like flippers, and so does this species of skink. It also lacks pigmentation as Moby Dick did.The type series consists of two specimens that measured in snout–vent length. The body is about wide at midbody. In preserved specimens, body is entirely pale with eyes visible as dark spots. Colour is assumed to be pinkish in live animals.