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Context: Knowledge of species' distribution and habitat associations is fundamental for conservation planning and management, especially in the context of range-restricted taxa. The Critically Endangered Kaputar rock skink (Egernia roomi) is a high elevation species that is restricted to the Nandewar Ranges (New South Wales, Australia). The species was not formally recognised until 2019, with its distribution, ecology, and threats poorly known. Aims: To determine the geographical distribution of the Kaputar rock skink and explore its ecology and threats. Methods: We performed surveys throughout high elevation regions of Mount Kaputar National Park, targeting suitable habitat for the Kaputar rock skink (rock outcrops and plateaux). Species distributional modelling (SDM) was used to identify potentially suitable habitat outside of our search areas. Key results: We detected the species at all historical record sites and at 15 new sites, increasing the species' known area of occupancy (AOO) four-fold (from 8 km2 to 40 km2), and elevational range three-fold (from 1360–1480 m to 1147–1509 m). Conclusion: The AOO for the species now exceeds the IUCN Red List threshold for Critically Endangered, but falls within the range for Endangered under Criterion B. Our SDMs indicated that all predicted suitable habitat for the species falls within the region that we surveyed in this study. Implications: Our study provides valuable information on the geographic range of a threatened lizard species and evaluates the potential impact of large-scale fires on the persistence of the species. The Kaputar rock skink (Egernia roomi) was only formally recognised as a species in 2019, with little known about its distribution and ecology. Given its miniscule distribution, it was federally listed as Critically Endangered, despite no further formal survey work. Here, we use field surveys as well as species distributional modelling to ascertain the species'true range and its threats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Context: Human activities are having a significant impact on biodiversity worldwide, to the extent that we are in the midst of the sixth mass extinction event. Although a substantial proportion of species globally have an elevated risk of extinction, some species are poorly known and there is insufficient information available to adequately assess their risk of extinction. Aims and methods: One such species is the glossy grass skink (Pseudemoia rawlinsoni), a widespread but enigmatic lizard species in south-eastern Australia. In order to improve our knowledge of its life history, and particularly its generation length, we examined museum specimens collected from across the range of the species, supplemented with measurements from field-caught individuals. Key results: We estimated that the species reaches sexual maturity in 3 years, at approximately 40 mm snout–vent length. Its generation length was estimated as 5 years. Sexual dimorphism was evident, and female body size was positively related to litter size. Although there was no evidence for substantial variation in morphology across the range of the glossy grass skink, a phylogeographic analysis using mitochondrial DNA sequence data (ND4) revealed the presence of seven genetic sublineages (up to 5.1% genetic divergence) within the species. Conclusions: The glossy grass skink appears to be a single, but widespread and genetically variable, species. Implications: Our study demonstrates how a targeted, multifaceted study can be effective at rapidly gathering data that can be used to contribute vital information to the assessment of extinction risk in Data Deficient species. Conservation efforts are often inhibited by a lack of information on a species; but we show it is possible to inform extinction risk with rapidly gathered data. We found that the glossy grass skink (Pseudemoia rawlinsoni) is a widespread, geographically variable species that matures in 3 years and has a generation length of 5 years. This information, in combination with other field-based studies, indicates that the glossy grass skink meets the criteria for listing as a threatened species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]