European green lizardLacerta viridis — habitat, diet and reproduction

Green male lizard with a blue head and throat among dry leaves

Male European green lizard (Lacerta viridis) with a blue head and throat. · Skot / CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). Cropped and resized.

The European green lizard is the largest lizard in Romania. Its body is bright green with tiny black or yellow dots, and males have blue throats in spring. It loves sunny places with bushes, basking on stones and dashing into cover when threatened.

Quick facts

Common name	European green lizard
Scientific name	Lacerta viridis
Lifespan	About 10 years; longer in captivity
Length	Up to about 40 cm, about two-thirds of it tail
Diet	Carnivore: insects, spiders, snails; sometimes fruit
Predators	Birds of prey, snakes, foxes, martens and cats
Conservation status	Least Concern (LC); protected in Romania and the EU
Distribution	Central and south-eastern Europe to Turkey
Habitat	Woodland edges, scrub, grassland and sunny slopes
Family	Lacertidae
Reproduction	Lays eggs in the soil

Primary category:Reptiles
Explore this animal's categories:
Animals of Asia Animals of Europe Animals of Romania Animals of Romania’s grasslands and plains Animals that regrow body parts Carnivores E Egg-laying animals Green animals Hibernating animals Insect-eating animals Reptiles Reptiles and amphibians of Romania Scaled animals Vertebrates Wild animals

Interesting facts

The green lizard has no venom and is not dangerous to people.
If grabbed by the tail, it can shed it; the tail regrows, but shorter.
Hatchlings are grey-brown and turn green only after a few years.
The male’s blue throat signals to females that he is ready to mate.

Characteristics

The green lizard has a robust body, a large head and a very long tail, almost twice the body length. Adult males are bright green with tiny black dots, and in spring their throat and sometimes head turn blue.

Females are usually duller, sometimes with pale stripes on the back. Hatchlings are brown and about 8–9 cm long.

Behaviour

It is active by day from spring to autumn. In the morning it basks to warm up, then searches for food among grass and shrubs. It climbs easily on bushes and low walls.

Males defend territories and may fight by biting each other’s heads. In winter it hibernates in burrows, under stones or roots. When handled it bites hard, but the bite is harmless.

Habitat and distribution

The green lizard lives in central and south-eastern Europe, from southern Germany to the Balkans, Ukraine and Turkey.

In Romania it is widespread mainly in lowlands and hills, on sunny slopes, woodland edges, orchards and railway embankments. It is absent from dense forest and high altitudes.

Diet and feeding

Its main food is large insects: grasshoppers, crickets, beetles and caterpillars. It also takes spiders, snails, earthworms and sometimes smaller lizards or baby mice.

In summer it may eat soft fruit such as cherries or blackberries. It hunts by sight, darting quickly towards prey.

Reproduction and life cycle

Mating takes place in spring after hibernation. In June, the female digs a hole in soft, sunny soil and usually lays 6–20 eggs.

The eggs develop with the warmth of the soil, and young hatch in late summer, independent from the start. Green lizards mature after two or three years.

Name and history

The scientific name Lacerta viridis means “green lizard” in Latin.

Western Europe has a very similar species, Lacerta bilineata, long considered the same. In Romania, the green lizard is the large green one, distinct from the smaller brown lizards.

Conservation and threats

The species is assessed globally as Least Concern. In the European Union it is strictly protected under Annex IV of the Habitats Directive, and in Romania it may not be captured or killed.

Main threats include the loss of grassland and scrub, pesticides, road traffic and cats. Keeping shrubby field margins and stone walls helps the species.