FROM FIELD AND STUDY g. The site of capture was less than 2 m above sea level, and within 10 An observation of Acritoscincus m of the edge of the reef platform trilineatum in a Wedge-tailed (0354244 E, 6455582 N). The Shearwater colony on Rottnest surrounding vegetation was Island - As its common name dominated by Iceplant suggests, the South-western Cool Mesembryanthemum crystallinum Skink Acritoscincus trilineatum and Coastal Saltbush Atriplex (formerly Bassiana trilineata) cinerea growing in coarse sand occurs in temperate, south¬ over the shearwater burrows. This western Australia, where it is capture represents a westerly generally associated with lakes, extension of the range of A. swamps, water courses and other trilineatum on Rottnest Island. damplands (Bush et al. 1995; Storr Characteristics of the site are et al. 1999). A. trilineatum has comparable with the known previously been recorded on ecological requirements of A. Rottnest Island, off the coast of Perth, Western Australia, where it trilineatum. M. crystallinum is a succulent annual, that traps a was described as ‘scarce’ (Storr humid air layer between its 1984) and ‘uncommon’ (Brooker et foliage and the ground surface al. 1995). The Western Australian (Rippey and Rowland 1995; W. Museum has six specimens from Bancroft pers. obs.). Although this Rottnest Island; one collected in plant dies off by mid-summer each of 1954, 1960 and 1961, with each year, the combination of M. no specific location details, and three collected in 1986 from the crystallinum and the shearwater burrows obviously provide Bickley Swamp area (data courtesy suitably humid refugia to support of R. How). The most westerly recording of this species on A. trilineatum. Rottnest Island is Narrowneck (J. Dell, pers. comm.). Storr (1984) REFERENCES noted that A. trilineatum was confined to damp areas in the BROOKER. M.G., SMITH, G.T., vicinity of freshwater seepages, SAUNDERS, D.A., INGRAM, J.A., but recent biological surveys on LEONE, J. and DE REBEIRA, C.P.S. the island suggest that the species 1995. A biological survey of is not so strictly associated with Garden Island, Western Australia: swamps or seeps (J. Dell, pers. 1. Birds and reptiles. Western comm.). Australian Naturalist 20:169-184. On 14 May 2003 I hand-captured a BUSH. B.. MARYAN, B., BROWNE- single, live specimen while COOPER, R. and ROBINSON, D. working in the Wedge-tailed 1995. A Guide to the Reptiles and Shearwater Puffinus pacificus Frogs of the Perth Region. University colony at Radar Reef, on the of Western Australia Press, south-western tip of Rottnest Nedlands, Western Australia. Island. The snout-vent length of the animal was 43 mm. the total RIPPEY, E. and ROWLAND, B. length 119 mm and it weighed 1.7 1995. Plants of the Perth Coast and 147 Islands. University of Western Both pairs were located within 30 Australia Press, Nedlands, Western mm of the soil surface in a dense Australia. mat of roots and were associated with the underground burrow STORR, G.M. 1984. Annotated list systems and nests of the ant of Rottnest frogs and reptiles. In: Camponotus sp. The surface Rottnest Island Authority (Ed), vegetation was dominated by Rottnest Island Management Plan. Olearia axillaris, Westringia Volume III, pp. 24-25. R1A, dampiera, and Acanthocarpus Rottnest Island, Western preissii. These observations support Australia. previous findings that A. repens STORR, G.M., SMITH, L.A. and frequent root mats (Cogger 2000), JOHNSTONE. R.E. 1999. Lizards of and that they forage Western Australia. I. Skinks. predominantly on ant larvae and Western Australian Museum, pupae (greater than 95% of gut Perth, Western Australia. contents: Webb and Shine 1994). -WESLEY J. BANCROFT, Each of the Rottnest Island pairs School of Animal Biology, M092, comprised one larger (approxi¬ University of Western Australia, mately 110 mm) and one smaller 35 Stirling Highway Crawley (approximately 90 mm) indi¬ WA 6009 vidual in close proximity (10-30 mm). A study by Patchell and Observations of Aprasia repens on Shine (1986) measured A. repens Rottnest Island - Worm lizards in specimens from the Sydney the genus Aprasia are pre¬ Museum and found mean snout- dominantly fossorial and their vent lengths (SVL) of were 83.7 ecology is not well understood mm for males and 108.0 mm for (Storr et al. 1990; Webb and Shine females. Similarly, for Western 1994; Cogger 2000). Existing Australian and South Australian information has largely been specimens, Webb and Shine (1994) deduced from dissection of reported mean SVL of 89.9 mm museum specimens (Webb and and 107.8 mm for male and female Shine 1994). Opportunistic ob¬ A. repens, respectively. It is likely servations of the behaviour of live that each of the Rottnest Island specimens are therefore particu¬ pairs comprised a male and female larly valuable in supplementing animal. the museum data. While the timing of copulation On 14 April 2003 I unearthed two and fertilisation has not been separate pairs of the South¬ recorded for A. repens, Webb and western Sandplain Worm Lizard Shine (1994) noted that females Aprasia repens, while collecting were gravid during November and soil samples at Radar Reef, December, and males had enlarged Rottnest Island (0354463 E, testes from August to November. 6455883 N). Remarkably the two It is probable that A. repens unearthings came from only five oviposits immediately after a localised instances of soil spring mating. If my observations sampling. represent reproductive pairs, then 148