Lacerta. 231 



Group III. — Italy, Tuscan Archipelago, Corsica, Sardinia, Sicily, 

 Tunisia, and Minorca. 



This group includes the vars. hedriagn^ and sarcloa, in which the 

 head and body are very strongly depressed (although not more so 

 than in certain forms of Groups IV and V), and a few others which 

 fill up the gap between them and the typical L. inuralis. Although 

 the extremes are so different, I feel sure this is a natural association, 

 and that the resemblance which the var. beclriag<e bears to L. oxxjcephala, 

 is merely a case of convergence. 



Although the shape of the head varies individually in the vars. 

 nigriventris, insulanica, and tiliguerta, these lizards as a whole answer 

 to the plntycephali of Eimer, and whilst the more primitive pattern of 

 coloration in the vars. brueggeinanni and tiliguerta pertains to the 

 maculata-striata type of the same author, the great majority of them 

 fall under his retindata and tigri? types, which are the exception in 

 the first grou[). 



The var. hrueggemanni is so completely linked with the typical 

 form in the noi-th of its habitat as to render the distinction arbitrary 

 in some cases, and farther south it is hardly to be separated from the 

 vars. nigriventris and insulanica. Although strikingly different in their 

 extremes, these varieties are not susceptible of satisfactory definitions. 



Var. brueggeinanni, Bedr. — Scales feebly but distinctly keeled, 51 

 to 65 across the body; 17 to 25 femoral pores; 23 to 29 lamellar 

 scales under the foiu-th toe ; colour usually green above ; belly usually 

 with large lilack s})ots. — Italy and Ell)a. 



Var. nigriventris, Bp. — -Scales distinctly keeled, 56 to 73 across the 

 body ; 16 to 25 femoral pores ; 24 to 31 lamellar scales under the 

 fourth toe ; black predominating above and beneath. — Rome, Naples. 



Var. insulanica, Bedr. — Scales feebly but distinctly keeled, 60 to 

 74 across the body ; 18 to 26 femoral pores ; 26 to 33 lamellar scales 

 under the fourth toe ; belly spotted with black at least on the sides, 

 the l)lack sometimes predominating above and beneath. — Pianosa near 

 Elba. 



Var. tiliguerta, Gm. — Scales feebly l)ut distinctly keeled, 60 to 82 

 across the l)ody ; 20 to 28 femoral pores ; 28 to 37 lamellar scales 

 under the fourth toe ; anterior upper temporal shield often in contact 

 with fourth supraocular ; belly without black spots. — Islands of the 

 Gulf of Tuscany, Sardinia, Sicily, Pantellaria, Tunis, Minorca. 



Var. bedriag:v, Camer. — Scales smooth, 58 to 84 across the body ; 19 



