Next Gen Herpetologist 
Animal of the Month
July
Short-Legged Seps (Tetradactylus seps)
Family: Gerrhosauridae
Scientific name: Tetradactylus seps (Linnaeus, 1758)
Size: 13-18cm
Diet: Mainly bees and grasshoppers
Description: Possesses a dark bronze head, body and tail with slightly fainter flanks. The belly is olive to bluish grey with irregular bands on the neck. There are whitish spots on the lip and the lower eyelids are scaly. The tail is twice the length of the body and the limbs are vastly reduced but still fully formed
Number of young: 2-3 oval shaped eggs once a year
Conservation status: Least concern
Distribution: Endemic to Southern Africa. Found in Eastern and Western cape from Cederberg through Cape Fold mountains and Amatola mountains. Also found in the Drakensburg, in Kwazulu Natal
Habitat: Found mainly in montane grassy plateaus and coastal forests. The species is particularly fond of moist conditions such as in damp and rotting logs at the base’s of mountains or next to water bodies. Has also been found in dense coastal and mountain fynbos
For more information on the short-legged seps, check out:
