In many females dissected for the purpose of obtaining egg counts, ovulation had not yet occurred. The ovarian eggs present in each of these females included two main size groups, the larger ones in process of maturing and evidently destined for deposition in the current season, and minute, immature ones. A few of intermediate size were always present, however, resulting in uncertainty as to the size of the clutch being produced, especially when development had not proceeded far. Even when the larger eggs formed a fairly distinct size group, some usually were well below maximum size. Relatively high counts of clutches were obtained from these examinations of enlarged ovarian eggs. Evidently development frequently is arrested, and resorption may occur before ovulation. As a result the numbers of ovarian eggs developing are a poor indication of actual clutch size. A series of gravid females were obtained and examined after ovulation; the numbers of eggs in their oviducts probably indicates accurately the sizes of their clutches. Gravid females taken from their nest burrows and kept in the laboratory in containers with loose damp soil soon excavated new burrows and deposited clutches. Many natural nests were found in the field, and the egg counts obtained from them provided further data concerning clutch size. Although most of these clutches probably had their full complements of eggs, others certainly had sustained losses to predators, or to the females themselves, which may eat some of the eggs. Therefore the average number found is erroneously low. Some of the natural nests found may have contained two or more clutches or parts of them, and the higher counts obtained from natural nests therefore are also questionable.
For different sets of data on clutch size, numbers were as follows:
| Source of Sample | Number of clutches | Mean | Standard deviation | Maximum | Minimum |
| Early ovarian | 25 | 11.4 ± .46 | 2.28 | 20 | 5 |
| Late ovarian, uterine, or laid in captivity | 56 | 9.16 ± .21 | 1.85 | 15 | 4 |
| In natural nests | 34 | 8.82 ± .32 | 1.85 | 16 | 4 |
On the average, larger females produce more eggs per clutch than do smaller females. Of 49 females for which measurements were recorded, and which had uterine or large ovarian eggs, 31 were 70 mm. or more in snout-vent length. These 31, mostly or entirely old adults, averaged 9.9 eggs per clutch, whereas 18 others that were 69 mm. or less in snout-vent length, and that must have been mainly or entirely newly matured adults in their first breeding season, averaged only 7.8 eggs per clutch.
Smith (1946:350) states that in the northern part of the range of this skink there is some indication of decrease in size of clutches. This is not well shown by published records. For the southern states, most of the published records of clutch size are by authors who did not clearly distinguish between the three kinds of five-lined skinks, and there is some doubt as to which species is involved in each record. For 56 clutches reported upon from north of approximately latitude 37°, I obtain a slightly higher figure than for 11 clutches from south of this line. Geographic trends are, of course, obscured by individual variation, and perhaps by abnormal clutches produced by individuals kept in captivity.
In [Table 7], the figures marked with asterisks pertain to clutches that might have belonged to skinks of the species E. laticeps or E. inexpectatus since they were recorded in regions where laticeps and in some cases, inexpectatus also, occurs along with fasciatus. If these questionable clutches are excluded the remaining 55, definitely of fasciatus, average 8.48 eggs per clutch, whereas the 12 questionable clutches average 8.42. Both figures are close to the average of 8.82 ± .32 eggs for the 34 natural nests recorded in the present study. For the total of 1661 eggs of 182 clutches, from the combined sample of all available records for clutches found in the present study or reported upon in the literature, the average egg number is 9.13.
Fig. 10. Correlation between size of female and number of eggs in clutch; females in their first breeding season, mostly less than 72 mm. in snout-vent length, produce smaller clutches, on the average, than do larger and older females, but there is extensive overlap.