Mabuya


Mabuya is a genus of long-tailed skinks restricted to species from various Caribbean islands. They are primarily carnivorous, though many are omnivorous. The genus is viviparous, having a highly evolved placenta that resembles that of eutherian mammals. Formerly, many Old World species were placed here, as Mabuya was a kind of "wastebasket taxon". These Old World species are now placed in the genera Chioninia, Eutropis, and Trachylepis. Under the older classification, the New World species were referred to as "American mabuyas", and now include the genera Alinea, Aspronema, Brasiliscincus, Capitellum, Maracaiba, Marisora, Varzea, and Copeoglossum.
The ancestors of the genus are believed to have rafted across the Atlantic from Africa during the last 9 million years.

Species

Listed alphabetically by specific name.
Nota bene: A binomial authority in parentheses indicates that the species was originally described in a genus other than Mabuya.