Lacerta citrovittata - Cyclades Giant Green Lizard
The green lizards from the Cyclades in Greece look so strange that scientists were confused during the 20th century: First, these lizards were regarded as a subspecies of Lacerta viridis. Later, they were assigned to Lacerta trilineata. Genetic analysis however revealed big distances to the latter one. Hence, Lacerta citrovittata has been put into species rank in 2019*. As it has no official common name, so far, the denomination "Cycladic Green Lizard" has been put in quotation marks.
Lacerta citrovittata is an endemic species of the Central Cyclades. From external characters, it differs from Lacerta trilineata by its grey or brownish body with yellow dorsolateral stripes. In some populations, adults may show blue heads.
Juveniles frequently show dark brownish colors with light dorsolateral lines and a light vertebral line (they basically look like juveniles of Lacerta trilineata).
Lacerta trilineata is a shy and rather secretive species often hiding in dense vegetation. Watching these lizards may require patience.
As it is the only big Lacertid on Central Cyclades, it can hardly be confused with other species. Juveniles differ from Podarcis erhardii - the only other species present - by the prominent dorsolateral and vertebral lines.
* See: Kornilios P, Thanou E, Lymberakis P, Ilgaz Ç, Kumlutaş Y, Leaché A. A phylogenomic resolution for the taxonomy of Aegean green lizards. Zool Scr. 2019;00:1–14
