BLUNT-SCALED SPECTACLED LIZARD Cercosaura ocellata
Members of this genus are known as Microteiids or Spectacled Lizards on account of their transparent lower eyelid - which means they can see even with the eyes closed  (see FPREP404PH). They are skink-like, with keeled scales, small heads and long tails (extremely long in this species, more than 3 times the head and body length). This species is distinguished from the extremely similar and much commoner Cercosaura schreibersii by the shape of the dorsal scales, being rectangular in this species (see FPREP407PH and FPREP408PH) and "squashed hexagons" in C.schreibersii.This species is known from very few records in Paraguay.
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FIGURE 1 - (FPREP401PH) Adult dorsal, Estancia Laguna Blanca, Departamento San Pedro (Jeni Oborn June 2010).
FIGURE 2 - (FPREP402PH) Same individual lateral (Karina Atkinson June 2010).
FIGURE 3 - (FPREP403PH) Same individual lateral (Karina Atkinson June 2010).
FIGURE 4 - (FPREP404PH) Same individual head detail (Jeni Oborn June 2010).
FIGURE 5 - (FPREP405PH) Same individual ventral (Karina Atkinson June 2010).
FIGURE 6 - (FPREP406PH) Same individual ventral scale detail (Karina Atkinson June 2010).
FIGURE 7 - (FPREP407PH) Same individual dorsal scale detail (Karina Atkinson June 2010).
FIGURE 8 - (FPREP408PH) Same individual dorsal scale detail (Karina Atkinson June 2010).
FIGURE 9 - (FPREP739PH) Dorsal, Estancia Kanguary, Departamento Itapúa (Hugo Cabral January 2007).
FIGURE 10 - (FPREP740PH) Same individual dorsal (Hugo Cabral January 2007).
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Thanks to Norman Scott and Pier Cacciali for their assistance in the identification of this specimen.
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Photographs on this page were taken by Jeni Oborn and Karina Atkinson and are used with permission.