Wish I'd had a camera, otherwise known as a really bad ID thread.

[Renenet]

When I was looking into the rainforest earlier today, I saw a reptilian head emerge from behind a rock. I gasped in excitement and watched, thinking it could be my first sighting of a Far North Queensland snake, but it was only a lizard. Not that that's not exciting, of course!

It was a reasonably big one, maybe 40 centimetres long (though I'm pretty bad at estimating length), brown and looked skink-like to me, but I can't seem to find a match in A Complete Guide to Reptiles. It stayed on the ground, moving cautiously through the leaf litter and finally disappeared into a pile of leaves.

I know I'm pretty unlikely to get a firm ID without a photo, but can anyone help me narrow it down based on size, behaviour and location (Cairns)?

Thanks,
Renenet

 

[Fang101]

Maybe a major skink, were you including the tail in the lenth?

 

[Tassie97]

Land Mullet ( Egernia major ) ?

 

[Renenet]

Thanks. Yes, I was. Taking a look at the picture, you could well be right. I will have to hope it passes by again so I can confirm it.