Description:

The eastern cleaner lizard (Munduscincius cephlauratius) is a skink species endemic to the Great Australian Plain. These lizards look relatively unchanged from their ancestor, the common garden skink (Lampropholis guichenoti), with the only physical changes being their colors and proportions. They have an orange head with a yellow snout. The rest of the body is brown with a cream underbelly. These lizards are about 20 to 30 centimeters long from head to tail, usually 7 to 8 centimeters from the tail. They also have longer claws, which allow them to cling to the large mammals they feed on. Usually, these animals live only 4 to 5 years in the wild but can live up to 20 years in captivity.

Distribution:

These reptiles live in the woody savannas and rocky outcroppings of the Great Australian Plain. These areas help the animals to climb onto other animals and clean them off.

Diet:

These animals are insectivorous. Most of their diet consists of parasites that feed on the blood of other animals, such as ticks, flies, fleas, and other parasites. If they don't have an available food source, they will eat non-parasitic insects and arachnids, such as crickets and spiders.

Reproduction:

There is no breeding season for these lizards. Being social and communal lizards, they usually mate whenever they can. Males often do "push-ups" to show how physically fit they are. The female lays about 10 to 12 white eggs and stays with them until they hatch.

Symbiotic Relationships:

These lizards are a perfect example of mutualism. As the name suggests, they remove parasites from larger animals, similar to an oxpecker or cleaner wrasse. Eastern cleaner lizards usually rest on rocks or branches and wait for an animal to walk near them. They use their bright heads to signal other animals that they are ready to clean them. Once the animal rests next to them, a group of up to twenty lizards will start to look for ticks, fleas, and other parasites that feed on the blood of large animals. They use their mouths to pry off these parasites and claws and legs to scale the animal. They can also jump to grab flies and other flying parasites. Once the skinks finish cleaning, the lizards hop off the host animal, leaving it parasite-free. Due to their role in the environment, they aren't often preyed on by predators since the service they provide is necessary for the health and well-being of the host animal. It also seems that colonies of cleaner lizards will remember certain animals that have killed or harmed other colony members and refuse to clean them.