Taxonomic notes:

Records of this species from Australia represent confusion with Carlia storri, which was not recognized as a distinct taxon until Ingram and Covacevich (1989).

This species is endemic to Papua New Guinea, where it occurs in southeast Papua New Guinea, northwest and east of Port Moresby (National Capital District) and from Bootles Bay, Yule Island, Amau Village and Sogeri Plateau (Central Province) (Ingram and Covacevich 1989, Austin et al. 2011). This species occurs from sea level to 600 m asl. (A. Allison, unpubl. data). 

This is a well-collected species (A. Allison pers. comm. 2014).

This skink is apparently restricted to coastal savannahs and areas in open lowland forest (Ingram and Covacevich 1989). In common with other New Guinean Carlia, it favours open areas and those with some disturbance (A. Allen pers. comm. 2014).

There is no trade in this species.

It is unlikely that any major threats are impacting this species.

There are no known species-specific conservation measures in place, or needed, for this species.

Carlia bicarinata has been assessed as Least Concern owing to its large distribution and ability to persist in disturbed habitats.

• Allison, A. 2007. pers. comm. Red List Assessment.
• Shearman, P. and Bryan, J. 2011. A bioregional analysis of the distribution of rainforest cover, deforestation and degradation in Papua New Guinea. Austral Ecology 36: 9-24.
• Zug, G.R., Barber, M.M. and Dudley, J.C. 1982. Gonadal histology and reproduction in Carlia bicarinata (Scincidae, Sauria, Reptilia) of the Port Moresby area, Papua New Guinea. Herpetologica 38(3): 418-425.