162 
LIZARDS. 
by the trapezoidal shape of the small occipital shield, by the absence of the row of 
small granules which occur between the shields of the eyelids (supraoculars) and 
eyebrows (supraciliaries) in the green and wall-lizards, and by the foot being not 
longer than the head. Although there is great variation in this respect, the 
general colour of the male is greenish, and that of the female grey or brown; the 
crown of the head, a streak down the back, and the tail being mostly brown, while 
the chin and under-parts are greenish or yellowish. The streak down the back, 
and in the females also the sides, are marked by rows of white spots, which are 
sometimes large and eye-like; and the under surface is marked with black. Some 
individuals, especially males, closely approach the green lizard in coloration. 
The range of the sand-lizard embraces North, Central, and Eastern Europe, 
and extends eastwards to Western Siberia and Asiatic Russia. In England it is 
generally found on sandy heaths, where it may often be seen running across the 
open paths with a speed less rapid than that of the more common viviparous 
species. It is more timid and less easily tamed than the green lizard, generally 
pining and refusing to feed in captivity. According to Bell, the female lays her 
eggs, to the number of twelve or fourteen, in hollows in the sand, which she 
excavates for the purpose, and having covered them carefully with sand, she 
leaves them to be hatched by the solar heat. 
Viviparous. A still smaller, and at the same time a more slightly built 
Lizard. species is the common English viviparous lizard ( L. vivipara), which 
varies in length from 6 to just over 7 inches in length. It has larger scales than 
the last, which are not more than forty-five round the middle of the body, and the 
foot generally exceeds the head in length; granules being absent above the eyes. 
The absence of teeth on the palate is another feature in which this species differs 
from the sand-lizard. The colour of the adult is brown, yellowish, or reddish, 
ornamented with small dark and light spots, and often with a dark streak down 
the back, and another, edged with yellowish, on each side. In the male, the under 
surface is orange or vermilion, spotted with black; and in the female, pale orange 
or yellow, sparsely spotted with black, or uniform. The young are nearly black, 
and this hue occasionally persists. Unknown to the south of the Alps, the 
viviparous, or, as it is sometimes called, mountain-lizard, is spread over the greater 
part of North and Central Europe, and the whole of Northern Asia, as far as 
Amurland, ranging in the Alps to a height of nearly ten thousand feet. At this 
elevation it is, however, dormant for fully three-quarters of the year, being active 
for only two or three months. In Britain it extends to Scotland, and is one of 
the few reptiles found in Ireland. Generally similar in its habits to its allies, it 
is more fond of water, and is a good swimmer, usually frequenting heaths and 
banks. “ Its movements,” writes Bell, “ are beautifully graceful as well as rapid; 
it comes out of its hiding-place during the warm parts of the day from the early 
spring till autumn has far advanced, basking in the sun, and turning its head 
with a sudden motion, if an insect comes within its view, and, darting like 
lightning upon its prey, it seizes it with its little sharp teeth, and speedily 
swallows it.” Unlike its kin, this species produces living young, varying from 
three to six in number, which are active as soon as born, and remain in the 
company of their parent for some time. 
