LIZARDS 
179 
along the sides of the head and body, 
while those peculiar to Eastern Europe 
and Asia Minor are, in the young con- 
dition more particularly, marked with 
longitudinal streaks, but their throat is 
never blue. 
The green lizard is one of the 
most beautiful of its tribe, and, although 
not indigenous to Great Britain, is com- 
mon in the Channel Islands. In Jersey, 
more especially during the summer 
months, it is one of the most familiar 
of the “ common objects of the country,” 
as it darts in and out of the hedge- 
rows after flies and other insects, or 
basks in the bright sunshine on some 
stone wall, with its emerald-green body 
flattened out in order to absorb the 
greatest possible amount of heat. As 
the colder autumn days advance this lizard is rarely visible, and it finally retires into some 
rocky cleft or burrow in the hedge-bank, and is no more seen until the return of spring. 
Geen lizards, liberated in suitably mild spots in the South of England, have been known to 
thrive for brief periods, but succumb to the cold of an extra-severe winter. 
The largest representatives of the green lizard are those inhabiting' Eastern Europe 
and Asia Minor, where in size and colour they almost imperceptibly merge into the 
Pearly or Ocellated Lizard. This very handsome species, which, in company w'ith 
examples of the green lizard, is frequently imported by London dealers, ranges from 
16 inches to close upon 2 feet in length. In form it is stouter and more robust than 
a typical green lizard, the head in the old males more particularly being exceptionally 
however, fully compensated 
for by brilliancy of colouring, 
no other lizard, in fact, out- 
rivalling it in this respect. To 
the brilliant shagreen- 
patterned emerald-green hues 
of the Jersey species it has 
superadded along its sides 
eye-like spots of brilliant tur- 
quoise or ultra-marine, with 
dark brown or black encir- 
cling lines. In the males the 
green ground-colour has a 
more distinctly golden hue, 
while in the young indi- 
viduals the body is more 
usually olive-colour, dotted 
throughout with whitish or 
pearly-blue, black-edged 
spots. This beautiful lizard 
is unfortunately somewhat 
irascible in temper, and will 
not as a rule allow itself to 
massive. Whatever may be lacking in grace of form is. 
photo by Savi'le- Kent^ F.Z.S.“\ \ h1ilford~nn~^ia 
OCELLATED LIZARDS AT HOME 
Tki most brilliantly coloured of liming lizards. The body is bright emerald-green.^ decorated 
on the sides luith azure-blue spots 
1 
Phot9 by H, G, F, Spurred^ Fsq,~\ [_Eastbourn$ 
GREEN LIZARD 
The tail of the green lizard is brittle, and breaks off in the hand if the 
animal is held up by it. A new tail grows from the fractured joint in course 
of time. 
