Eating Habits of the Blue-Tailed Skink

Blue-tailed skinks are carnivorous lizards. These attractively marked skinks feed on whatever will fit into their mouths but instinctively avoid eating poisonous creatures. Blue-tailed skinks are diurnal, or active during the day, and begin searching for food as soon as it warms up each morning. Blue-tailed lizards are found in different countries, but they all predate on various insects and arthropods.

  1. Diet in the Wild

    • Blue-tailed skinks are opportunistic hunters that prey on a variety of insect and arthropod species. A significant portion of this lizard's diet consists of adult insects and their larvae. Blue-tailed skinks will actively source grasshoppers, beetles, flies and crickets, but will also prey on arthropods, earthworms, slug, snails, ants and moths. Spiders are the most commonly targeted arthropods, but centipedes are also eaten.

    Easily Subdued Prey

    • Blue-tailed skinks primarily eat insects. These lizards, being reptiles, are dependant on a warm environment to hunt. Blue-tailed skinks alternate their day between actively hunting and resting in sunny areas to build up energy for additional foraging activities. Although the blue-tailed lizard preys on a variety of different creatures, it only eats those it can easily subdue. Adult and juvenile blue-tailed skinks feed on the same prey items, but mature animals are able to eat larger insects. Male and female blue-tailed lizards target the same prey organisms.

    Diet in Captivity

    • Captive blue-tailed skinks' diet should principally consist of mealworms and crickets. Enrich "feeder" insects with a commercial pre-made "gut loading" diet, prior to feeding it to your blue-tailed skink. Gut-loading diets are highly nutritious and well balanced to ensure the insects provide the correct nutrition for the blue-tailed skink. Captive lizards will not thrive unless fed on insects that are themselves well nourished. Also feed these feeder insects a diet of mixed vegetables.

    Dietary Supplements

    • Captive blue-tailed skinks must receive calcium and multivitamins as supplements. Sprinkle both powders onto feeder insects prior to feeding them to your skink. Supplemental powders can be sprinkled onto feeder insects twice per week. Place the feeder insects in a shallow dish to prevent your blue-tailed skink from consuming excessive amounts of soil when feeding. Feed your blue-tailed skinks every two days. Continue to feed them insects until the lizards stop showing an interest in them.