■^68 Lacertidie. 



Var, MONTICOLA. 



Lacerta muralis, var. monticola, Bouleng. Tr. Zool. Soc. xvii, 1905, 

 p. 365, pi. xxiv, figs. 11-13, and pi. xxv, figs. 11-13, and xx, 1913, 

 p. 145, pi. xvi, fig. 14 



Lacerta monticola, Schreib. Herp. Eur., ed. 2, p. 409 (191"2). 



A mountain form completely connected with and evidently derived 

 from the preceding, and so closely resembling the Caucasian forms 

 ■chalyhdea and saxieola that it would be identified with them were it 

 not for the remote habitat. I regard this resemblance as an interest- 

 ing case of parallelism which throws light on the question of the rank 

 to be assigned to other forms allied to L. muralis. The var. monticola 

 has also much in common with the var. horvathi, from which it differs 

 principally in the absence of a dark vertebral streak. 



The head is strongly depresseil, and the upper temporals are well 

 visible from above ; snout very obtuse. The hind limb reaches the 

 wrist or the elbow of the adpressed fore limb (females) ; the foot is 

 •slightly shorter than the head. Tail If times as long as head and 

 body. 



The rostial does not touch the nostril and forms a suture with the 

 frontonasal ; in one specimen the nasal forms a suture with the 

 anterior loreal above the postnasal ; frontal as long as or a little 

 shorter than its distance from the end of the snout ; series of granules 

 between the supraoculars and the superciliaries usually complete''' ; 

 •6 or 7 superciliaries, suture between the first and second vertical ; 

 parietals 1^ times as long as broad, antero-lateral border sometimes 

 -concave ; occipital shorter and a little broader than the interparietal ; 

 subocular not or but slightly narrower beneath than above; masse- 

 teric shield usually larget ; two or three large upper temporals, the 

 first sometimes in contact with the fourth supraocular. 



22 to 26 scales in a longitudinal series between the symphysis of 

 the chin-shields and the median collar-plate ; gular fold feebly 

 marked. Collar even-edged, composed of 8 to 10 plates. 



Dorsal scales large and flat, smooth, or feebly keeled on the posterior 

 part of the back, larger than those on the sides, which are larger than 

 those on the upper surface of the tibia ; 46 to 52 scales across the 

 middle of the body, 27 to 34 transverse series corresponding to the 

 length of the head, 3 or 4 on the side corresponding to a ventral 

 plate. 28 or 29 transverse series of ventral plates, some of which may 



* Incomplete in a specimen from Burbia. 

 t Absent in a specimen from Burbia. 



