About Paralaudakia caucasia (Eichwald, 1831)
Paralaudakia caucasia (Eichwald, 1831) has a much depressed head; the nostril is lateral, positioned below the canthus rostralis, and slightly tubular. Upper head scales are smooth; the occipital scale is not enlarged. Small conical spinose scales are present on the side of the head near the ear, and on the neck. The ear opening is larger than the eye opening. The throat is strongly plicate, and no gular pouch is present. The body is much depressed, with a very indistinct lateral fold. Nuchal and latero-dorsal scales are very small and granular. The vertebral region has enlarged flat, feebly keeled, rather irregular scales. Flanks have enlarged, strongly keeled or spinose scales. There is no nuchal denticulation. Ventral scales are smooth, and distinctly smaller than the enlarged dorsal scales. There are 150 to 160 scales around the middle of the body. Limbs are strong, with compressed digits; scales on the upper surface of limbs are much enlarged, strongly keeled, and generally spinose. The fourth finger is slightly longer than the third; the fourth toe is a little longer than the third, and the fifth toe extends beyond the first. The tail is rounded, depressed at the base, covered with rather large spinose scales arranged in rings, with two rings forming a distinct segment. The tail length does not quite equal twice the distance from the gular fold to the vent. Males have a large patch of callose preanal scales and an enormous patch of similar scales on the belly. The dorsal surface is olivaceous, marked with round yellowish spots that have black edges; black color frequently forms a network across the dorsal area. The vertebral region is yellowish, and limbs have more or less distinct yellowish cross bars. The lower surface is yellowish in females, and blackish in breeding males. The length from snout to vent is 5 inches.
