Melanoseps loveridgei, also known commonly as Loveridge's limbless skink, is a species of lizard in the subfamily Scincinae of the family Scincidae. The species is native to East Africa.
Description Relatively large for its genus, Melanoseps loveridgei may attain a total length (tail included) of . The tail length is about 25% of the total length. There are 18 scale rows around the body at midbody. Coloration is gray or black dorsally and lighter ventrally. 624 pp.
Geographic range Melanoseps loveridgei is found in Democratic Republic of the Congo, Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, and Zambia.
Habitat The preferred natural habitats of Melanoseps loveridgei are forest and savanna.
Behavior Melanoseps loveridgei is terrestrial and fossorial.
Reproduction The mode of reproduction of Melanoseps loveridgei has been variously described as being viviparous and as being ovoviviparous.
Etymology The specific name, loveridgei, is in honor of British herpetologist Arthur Loveridge.Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . (Melanoseps loveridgei, p. 161).
References
Further reading (Melanoseps loveridgei, p. 14). (Melanoseps loveridgei, new species, p. 1183). (in French). 376 pp.