Reproductive cycle of the Kalahari tree skink, Trachylepis spilogaster (Squamata: Scincidae) from southern Africa

The reproductive cycle of the viviparous Kalahari tree skink, Trachylepis spilogaster, was studied from a histological examination of gonadal material. Males follow a seasonal testicular cycle in which spermiogenesis occurred in spring and early summer. Regression followed by recrudescence took place during summer and autumn. Females began to deposit yolk the previous Summer from which young were born. Not all females reproduce annually. Female litter size was positively correlated with body size. Mean litter size for 29 T spilogaster females was 4.93 +/- 1.6 SD; range 2-9. Litter sizes of 2 and 9 are new minimum and maximum sizes for T. spilogaster.