Microsatellite loci from the five‐lined skink (Eumeces fasciatus)

The geographical range of the five‐lined skink is the most expansive of any eastern North American lizard, ranging from previously glaciated southern Canada southward to the Gulf of Mexico and from the Atlantic seaboard west to Texas and Minnesota. The most northerly populations occur in southern Ontario and are of conservation concern. We developed six polymorphic dinucleotide microsatellite loci to examine the genetic structure within and among Ontario's populations and to examine the intrapopulation levels of genetic diversity relative to more southern populations.