Lacerta. 145 



an assumption, and I thei'efore look upon L. Jerjugini and L. vivipara 

 as probably independently derived from the same orij^inal stock, 

 evolved out of the primitive form of L. afjilin, the former approaching- 

 the typical L. mv7-alis in another evolutionary series. 



I am indebted to M. Nesterov for the specimens from Mechelripsch 

 and to M. L. Lantz for the othei's. 



14. LACERTA PRATICOLA. 



Lacerta praticola, Eversm. N. Mi'm. Soc. Nat. Mosc. iii, 1834^ 

 p. 345, pi. XXX, fig. 2 ; Kessler, Tr. St. Petersb. Nat. Soc. viii, 1878,. 

 p. 156; Boettg. in Eadde, Faun. Flor. Casp. Geb. p. 36 (1886); 

 Bedriaga, Abh. Senck. Ges. xiv, 1886, p. 367 ; Bouleng. Cat. Li/, iii, 

 p. 25 (1887) ; Boettg. Ber. Senck. Ges. 1892, p. 139 ; Mehely, Math. 

 Nat. Ber. IJng. xii, 1894, p. 255 ; Bedriaga, Zool. Anz. 1895, p. 261 ; 

 Mehely, Zool. Anz. 1895, p. 474; Kiritzescu, Bui. Soc. Sc. Bucur. x, 

 1901, p. 313 ; Nikolsky, Herp. Eoss. p. 124 (1905) ; Lehrs, Festschr. 

 E. Hertwig, ii, pi. xiv, fig. 7 (1910) ; Schreib. Herp. Eur., ed. 2, p. 508 

 (1912) ; Kowatcheff, Herp. Faun. Bulg. p. 29 (1912) ; Nikolsky, 

 Herp. Caucas. p. 55 (1913) ; Tzarewsky, Trav. Soc. Nat. Petrogr. 

 xliii, 4, 1914, p. 24; Lantz k Cyrcu, Ann. & Mag. N. H. (9). iii, 

 1919, p. 28. 



Lacerta vivipara, var. stenolepis, Nikolsky, Ann. Mus. Zool. Ac. 

 St. Petersb. xvi, 1911, p. 1, and Herp. Caucas. p. 54. 



Lacerta praticola pontica, Lantz & Cyreu, t.c. p. 30. 



Form intermediate between L. vivipara and L. mnralis tyjnca. 

 Head small, 1| to l;^ times as long as broad, its depth equal to the 

 distance from the anterior corner of the eye to the tympanum, its 

 length 3^ to 4^ times in length to vent in males, 4{r to 5 times in 

 females ; snout obtuse, as long as or a little shorter than postorbital 

 part of head ; cheeks not swollen. Pileus 1^ to 2 times as long as 

 broad. Neck a little narrower than the head. The hind limb reaches 

 the elbow or the axil in males, the wrist in females. Foot 1^ to 

 li times length of head. Digits scarcely compressed. Tail cylin- 

 drical, tapering from the base, 1^ to nearly 2 times length of head 

 and body. 



Nostril pierced between three (exceptionally four) shields. Eostral 

 not touching the nostril; suture between the nasals short or very 

 short ; frontonasal broader than long, broader than the internarial 

 space ; suture between the prefrontals usually very short,* sometimes 



* Frontonasal in contact with tho frontal in a female from Comana Forest. 



10 



