Russia, Georgia and Northeastern Azerbaijan / Central to south-eastern part of the Caucasus. 

Species:

Darevskia caucasica  (MÉHELY, 1909)

Subspecies (2):

Darevskia caucasica caucasica  (MÉHELY, 1909)

Darevskia caucasica vedenica  (DAREVSKY & ROITBERG 1999)

Synonyms:

Lacerta muralis  BOETTGER, 1893

Lacerta caucasica  MÉHELY, 1909

acerta muralis var. caucasica  BOULENGER, 1913

Lacerta saxicola caucasica  NIKOLSKY, 1915

Darevskia caucasica  ARRIBAS, 1997

Common names:

Caucasian lizard (English)
Kaukasus-Eidechse (German)
Кавказская ящерица (Russian)

Types:

caucasica: Lectotype: SMF 12069 (6028 b), 1.05.1879. Сoll.: H. Leder (fide DORONIN 2014), (MEHELY listed about 19 specimens).

vedenica: Holotype: ZISP 17744 (1). Russian Federation, Chechnya, Vedensky District, 1 km south of the of Vedeno Village, rock faces along the road Vedeno-Kharachoi (= Khоrachoi), 42°57 ́N 46°07 ́E, 14.08.1963. Coll.: И.С. Даревский

Terra Typica:

caucasica: Kazbek Mountain, the Caucasus, Republic of Georgia; “Mleti, Aragwathal, Transkaukasien” (fide MEHELY 1909) etc. incl. Kasbek, Lars and other localities. Lectotype locality: Republic of Georgia, Mtskheta-Mtianeti, Kazbegi Municipality, Mount Kazbek, 42°40 ́N 44°35 ́E (Fig. 6 in DORONIN 2014) (the lectotype locality invalidates the original type locality).

vedenica: Southern slopes and foothills of the Andiiskii ridge, Chechen Republic, probably adjacent territories of Daghestan. Type locality: 1 km south of Vedeno rock faces along the road Vedeno -Kharochoi) SE Chechen Republic.


Relevant taxonomic literature:

  • Méhely, L. (1909) -  Description of Darevskia caucasica. – In: “Materialien zu einer Systematik und Phylogenie der muralis-ähnlichen Lacerten”. -  Annales historico-naturales Musei nationalis Hungarici, Budapest, 7 (2): 409-621.   

  • Roitberg, E.S. (1999) -  Morphological differentiation of nominative and Dagestan forms of the complex Lacerta caucasica (Sauria, Lacertidae) in the contact zone: Sympatric populations from Dagestan and Southeastern Chechnya. -  Russian Journal of Zoology, 78 (2): 217-227.    

  • Bischoff, W. (2003) -  Die Eidechsenfauna Georgiens. Teil II. Die Gattung Darevskia. -  Die Eidechse, Bonn, 14 (3): 65-93.    

  • Ciobanu, D.G. & Grechko, V.V. & Darevsky, I.S. (2003) -  Molecular Evolution of Satellite DNA CLsat in Lizards from the Genus Darevskia (Sauria: Lacertidae): Correlation with Species Diversity. -  Russian Journal of Genetics, Moscow, 39 (11): 1292-1305.    

    Чобану Д.Г., Гречко В.В., Даревский И.С. (2003) -  Молекулярная эволюция сателлитной ДНК CLSAT ящериц рода Darevskia (Sauria: Laeertidae): корреляция с видовым разнообразием. -  Генетика, 39 (11): 1527-1541.  

 
 
 
 

Darevskia caucasica: 66  pictures (see subspecies level)

 
 
 

Darevskia caucasica caucasica  © 2023 Robert Ullrich