Western Green Lizard

Fascinating facts about the Western Green Lizard

• Males grow a conspicuous blue throat and the fierce mating battles start with a bite at the base of the female's tail. These fights occur when the lizards are about two years old and 8 cm long (excluding tail), the age they first become sexually mature.
• Western green lizards inhabit a mosaic of green humid areas, temperate forests, woodland edges, shrubland, open grassland, arable land, and pastureland, showing they can thrive in both natural and human-altered landscapes. Yet the same flexibility makes them vulnerable: when any of these habitats are cleared for development, the lizards lose the patchwork of shelter and foraging grounds they need to survive.
• The species spans a wide European footprint, native to Andorra, Croatia, France, Germany, Italy, Monaco, Serbia, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, Guernsey and Jersey, and even established introduced colonies on the south coast of the U.K. around Poole Bay in Dorset.
• A western green lizard can stretch to a total length of 40 cm (16 in) when its tail is fully extended, which is up to twice the length of its 13 cm (5.1 in) body. Its average weight of about 35 g.
• A single female can lay between 6 and 25 eggs in a warm, humid spot such as a decomposing log.

Sources

Every fact above was checked against these pages, and kept only where one of them states it.

• Wikipedia

At a glance

About the Western Green Lizard

As the warmth of the sun dances across the rocky outcrops, the Western Green Lizard stirs to life, its emerald scales glistening like polished jewels as it basks in the radiant light. With a swift, darting motion, it navigates the intricate landscape of its Mediterranean habitat, its agile form weaving in and out of crevices and cracks with effortless ease. In this sun-kissed world, the Western Green Lizard reigns supreme, its vibrant coloration and nimble movements a testament to its remarkable adaptability and enduring presence in this ancient, storied landscape.

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