LACERTA MURALIS IN WESTERN EUROPE AND NORTH AFRICA. 401 



The upper parts are greyish olive, in spirit, with a darker lateral band, with or 

 without a vertebral series of small blackish spots, or reticulate all over with brown or 

 black, the network enclosing roundish pale spots; on the posterior part of the back 

 the dark markings may form wavy transverse bands ; the head is sometimes uniform 

 olive-brown above, sometimes much spotted with black ; the lower parts are unspotted, 

 or with rather small black spots, forming regular longitudinal series along the rows 

 of ventral plates. On the whole, as noticed by Eimer, the coloration bears much 

 resemblance to that of L. muralis (typ. and var. Irueggemanni) as occurring near Genoa. 



The young is covered with dark and light spots, with a dark lateral band edged above 

 and below with whitish. 



According to Eimer, the colour of the back in life is yellowish green or yellow ; the 

 belly saffron-yellow or red. 



Measurements : — , q 



From end of snout to vent 71 57 



fore limb .... 28 21 



Length of head 17 12 



Depth of head 11 7i 



Fore limb 24 20 



Hind limb 43 30 



Foot 24 18 



Tail (reproduced) 107 85 



The Wall-Lizard of Linosa (PI. XXVII. fig. 8.), referred by Camerano and myself to 

 the typical form, agrees in all essential respects with that from Malta, judging from the 

 single specimen at my disposal, received from Prof. Giglioli. It has 68 scales across 

 the body, 28 gulars in a longitudinal series, 23 femoral pores on each side, and 34 

 lamellar scales under the fourth toe. The belly is spotted with black. 



The following form, from the Filfola Rock, south of Malta, is evidently derived from 

 the Maltese lizard, just as the Faraglioni lizard is derived from that living on Capri. 

 But while in the latter case the distinction rests entirely upon the darkening of the 

 ground-colour — size, scaling, and markings having remained exactly the same, — we here 

 find that the melanism is obtained by an invasion of the black markings, and this 

 difference is accompanied by an increase in size and, on an average, smaller scales. 

 The Filfola form is therefore entitled to the same rank as the var. nigriveiitris, which 

 stands to the typical form exactly in the same relation as the var. filfolensis does 

 to the var. serpa. 



Var. FILFOLENSIS. 



Zootoca lilfordi, part., Giinth. Ann. & Mag. N. II. (1) xiv. 1871, p. 158. 



Lacerta filfolensis Bedriaga, Die Faraglione-Eidechse, p. ID (187G) ; Braun, Arb. zool. Inst. 

 Wiirzb. iv. 1877, p. 19, pi. i. fig. 1 L; Bedriaga; Arch. f. Nat. 1878, p. 297. 



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