For those individuals recaptured twice, at different locations, the three points of capture show to a greater or lesser degree the position, and, in part, the extent of the home range. Of course, all three points may be concentrated near the center of the home range, or they all may be scattered along its edges. In general, however, each point will lie somewhere between the center and edge of the home range, separated from each of the other two points by a distance of, on the average, approximately a home range radius.
[Table 15] shows that adult males and young tend to range more widely than adult females, and that young tend to shift to new areas more frequently than do adults. Many of the recorded movements (in addition to the long ones that were excluded from the home range computations) may have involved short shifts in ranges. If all such shifts could be definitely identified and eliminated from the computations, actual home ranges might be considerably smaller than those indicated by the present set of data. Home ranges approximately 90 feet across for adult males and young, and a little more than 30 feet across for females are indicated. Actual area of a home range would amount to only a fraction of an acre—from about one-seventh to less than one-fiftieth. The dash of an alarmed skink to a place of refuge, though involving at most only a few seconds, may traverse a large part of its home range. Through long association the lizard is thoroughly familiar with the terrain, so that it can take full advantage of the peculiar features in escaping, hunting, traveling or resting.
Table 15. Distances Between Successive Sites of Capture for Marked Five-lined Skinks on Study Areas, Indicating Home Range Sizes.
| Age, Sex and Number of Captures | Average maximum distance in feet between points of capture, and extremes | Number of skinks included in sample | Number of skinks discarded from sample because of relatively long movements, indicative of shifts of range |
| Adult males | |||
| Individuals captured just twice | 47 (225-0) | 41 | 1 |
| Individuals captured just three times | 47 (130-0) | 18 | 0 |
| Individuals captured four or more times | 91 (200-0) | 17 | 2 |
| Adult females | |||
| Individuals captured just twice | 16 (90-0) | 56 | 4 |
| Individuals captured just three times | 25 (90-0) | 25 | 3 |
| Individuals captured four or more times | 28 (90-0) | 15 | 1 |
| Young | |||
| Individuals captured just twice | 45 (160-0) | 85 | 8 |
| Individuals captured just three times | 46 (150-0) | 14 | 0 |
| Individuals captured four or more times | 82 (175-0) | 14 | 2 |
Relatively few marked individuals were caught four or more times at different sites. For these individuals listed below the distribution of the sites is more or less indicative of shape and size of the home range in some instances. For some of them successive locations of capture are shown and possible home ranges are outlined in Figures [21]-[25].
Fig. 21. Map of Skink Woods study-area, showing chief physiographic features and landmarks, and showing also successive sites and dates of capture of a marked male skink and two marked females, suggesting extent of home ranges.