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The Syrian Handsome:)


The Syrian Handsome:)
Photo Information
Copyright: Bayram Gocmen (boreocypriensis) Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 6774 W: 207 N: 2989] (9571)
Genre: Animals
Medium: Color
Date Taken: 2010-07-09
Categories: Reptiles
Camera: Nikon D-80, AF-S VR Micro-Nikkor 105mm f/2.8G IF-ED, SIGMA 62MM EX DG MC UV Filter
Exposure: f/14.0, 1/200 seconds
Photo Version: Original Version
Theme(s): Syrian Herpetofauna, Turkish Herpetofauna, Herpetofauna of the Middle East [view contributor(s)]
Date Submitted: 2010-08-07 5:56
Viewed: 6422
Favorites: 1 [view]
Points: 68
[Note Guidelines] Photographer's Note
Phenicolacerta laevis (=Lacerta laevis) (Syrian Lizard, Hatay Lizard) [in Turk. Suriye Kertenkelesi, Hatay Kertenkelesi]

I think this is the 1st post on TN of this very agile lizard species since I’ve uploaded its first posts approx. 3 years ago:). I became face-to face with this Syrian handsome in Tartous while I was searching tree frog between the bushes.

TFL and Have a nice Saturday!
Cheers,

©Bayram GÖÇMEN, All Rights Reserved.

*****************************

Syrian Lizard is widespread in the Eastern Mediterranean region, ranging from Turkey (starting from Antalya province) through Lebanon and Syria to Israel (Gaza) and Jordan. It inhabits various light forests and various types of bushy habitats. Being closely dependent on trees and/or bushes, P. laevis avoids deforested and degraded areas. The former races, P. l.. kulzeri (Petra Lizard or Kulzer’s Rock Lizard) and P. l. troodica (Cyprus Lizard, Troodos Lizard) are currently treated as full species.

Syrian Lizard is a medium-sized lizard with relatively long head, pointed snout and dark lateral bands. Typically, a large masseteric scale in temporal region is present (the main distinguishing feature from P. kulzeri). The edge of collar is not serrated. The dorsal scales are usually keeled, organized in 51-66 longitudinal rows; ventrals are in 6 longitudinal rows. There is a large anal plate, usually without granular scales between this plate and the anal slit. Ground coloration varies greatly, from pale brown to grayish brown, sometimes with olive-green or reddish hue. Typically, there are dark-brown lateral bands, starting from the nostrils, continuing on flanks and disappearing in the pelvic region, usually not extending along the sides of the tail. On the body, the upper and lower margin of the dark bands is often bordered by scattered, sometimes fusing whitish dots. Adults possess blue small spots on lower flanks. Juveniles have turquoise tails. P. laevis is larger and stronger built than P. kulzeri, reaching up to 78mm in SVL; males are larger than females.

It is a diurnal lizard, foraging both on the ground and on trunks and branches of various trees and bushes. Mainly in the morning, it can be observed basking on sun-exposed trunks of oaks or, less commonly, on stones and rocks. If pursued, it rapidly runs to the nearest bush and/or climbs to higher parts of trunk. The diet consists of smaller arthropods and varies, depending on the seasonal availability. During the coolest months (between December and February), it hibernates; the breeding season starts in March to the end of April. Females lay probably more clutches per year, each consisting of approx. 5-8 whitish elongated eggs.

References:

1. Göçmen, B. (Unpub. results). The results of herpetological trips.
2. Budak, A. & Göçmen, B. (2005). Herpetology. Ege Üniversitesi Fen Fakültesi Kitaplar Serisi, No. 194, Ege Üniversitesi Basimevi, Bornova-Izmir, 226 pp. [2nd Edition, 2008].
3. Budak, A. & Göçmen, B.. (1995). Kuzey Kıbrıs Lacerta laevis Gray, 1838 (Sauria: Lacertidae) Örnekleri Hakkında. Turkish Journal of Zoology, 19 (2): 1-15.
4. Tosunoğlu, M., Göçmen, B., Taşkavak, E. & Budak, A. (1999). A Serological Comparison of the Populations of the Lacerta laevis Complex in Northern Cyprus and Southern Turkey. Zoology in the Midle East, 19, 117-122.
5. Disi, A. M., Modry, D., Necas, P. & Rifai, L. (2001). Amphibians and Reptiles of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. Edition Chimaira, 408 pp.
6. Atatür, M. K & Göçmen, B. (2001). Amphibians and Reptiles of Northern Cyprus (1st Edition), Ege Üniversitesi, Fen Fakültesi Kitaplar Serisi, No. 170, Ege Üniversitesi Basimevi, Bornova-Izmir, 63 pp.
7. Schmidtler, J.F. & Bischoff, W. (1999). Revision des levantinischen Lacerta laevis/kulzeri-Komplexes: 1. Die Felseneidechse Lacerta cyanisparsa sp.n. - Salamandra, Rheinbach, 35 (3): 129-146.
8. Arnold, E. N., Arribas, O. & Carranza, S. 2007. Systematics of the Palaearctic and Oriental lizard tribe Lacertini (Squamata Lacertidae Lacertinae), with descriptions of eight new genera. Zootaxa 1430: 1-86.
CatherineD, bahadir, cypturk, Argus, marianas, marhowie, anemone, horias, haraprasan, marius-secan, yasemin, cirano, siggi, caspian, vanderschelden, albert, ferranjlloret, tuslaw, montivipera, omereser, nkasot, Miss_Piggy, CeltickRanger has marked this note useful
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Discussions
ThreadThread Starter Messages Updated
To omereser: :)boreocypriensis 1 08-09 00:22
To jignasi: Hi Josepboreocypriensis 1 08-08 02:33
To caspian: Teiekkürlerboreocypriensis 1 08-07 23:05
To CatherineD: he didn't I mean...CatherineD 2 08-07 06:44
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Critiques [Translate]

Hello MF!
Great capture of this handsome boy, very curious to see you! :) I like very well the composition and the pose. Excellent timing too. I suppose he did give you so many time to take this shot. Good evening dear,
Cathy

Hi neighbor brother,

a very nice dof from this lizad with good pov and blurred dof.
Fine colours.

Gert

Vay hocam, dllar arasında zor bir çekim olmuş belli ama dinamizm dolu bir çekim olmuş. Başını çevirip size yan gözle bakmış:) Aaba dişisinden uzak durun diyemi? hehe..
Elinize ve emeğinize sağlık hocam. İyi dinlenmeler.
Bahadır

Dayi muhtesem bir bakis acisi ve cok guzel bir yuz ifadesi yakalamissin bu YAKISIKLIdan:) sanki ustumuze sicrayacak gibi canli.
Eline saglik. KIB!
Mel

  • Great 
  • PeterZ Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 5137 W: 166 N: 13121] (49139)
  • [2010-08-07 7:17]

Hello Bayram,
Very beautiful photo of this special lizard with an excellent sharp focus on the head. Great and attractive pose. Beautiful natural colours and composition.
Regards,
Peter

  • Great 
  • Argus Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 5038 W: 260 N: 15594] (50626)
  • [2010-08-07 7:21]

Merhaba Bayram dostum!
Once again congratulations on this herpetogical first for TN and for the nice way you took this P. laevis.
I like the pose that makes it look cute from this frontal POV, the head being super sharp and the eye contact is appealing.
Thanks and enjoy the rest of your WE,
Cheers,
Ivan

Hello Bayram
Congratulation for this first TN post!
Great and lovely lizard, with wonderful details and colors.
Mariana

Great pose and an interesting comp..
It makes you feel like he's ready to crawl into the room :)
Handsome fella, well done!

Merhaba hocam:) çok fena kesmiş sizi. Son anda yakalanmış gibi bakmış size. Bakış açısından derinliğe ve detaylara her bakımdan sıradışı güzellikte. Emeğinize sağlık Hocam. Sayenizde bir de Suriye yakışıklısı gördük. ehhh ehhh..
Saygılarımla.
Özgür

hello Bayram
supe pose with nice light and beautiful colours
and very good sharpness
looks good
greeting lou

  • Great 
  • horias Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 837 W: 58 N: 2084] (11033)
  • [2010-08-07 10:26]

MF Bayram
Again a great shot from you.
New on TN, perfect captured, great work my friend!
Congratulation for that!
Horia

Selam my dear friend,
A lovely capture of this beautiful Syrian Lizard. Very nice angle of view. Sharp details and nice composition. Thanks a lot for sharing.

Have a nice Sunday...

Hello Bayram,
Nice capture with excellent focus on the head and eyes. Great composition with interesting POV. Have a nice weekend!
Marius

Canim kardesim.. bu suriyeli sana cok degisik bakmis.. yuz ifadesi super. ellerine saglik..hepimizden selam ve sevgiler.
Leyla.

  • Great 
  • cirano Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 997 W: 0 N: 944] (13609)
  • [2010-08-07 12:53]

Uff dedim açar açmaz, bu ne muhteşem derinliktir böyle diye.Vallahi süper bir çekim olmuş.Bundan iyisi Şamda kayısı:) Eline emeğine sağlık dostum gerçekten harika bir sonuç çıkarmışsın.
Selamlar...

  • Great 
  • siggi Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 3097 W: 109 N: 12399] (52850)
  • [2010-08-07 13:46]

Hello MF Bayram,
The composition is fantastic, with the nice pose of the lizard, the great focus and the placement of the eye contact. Great background too.Best regards Siggi

Merhaba Bayram hocam,

Çok güzel bir türü daha sayenizde tanıma fırsatı bulduk.
Hem de çok ustaca çekilmiş harika bir çekim ile.
Elinize ve emeğinize sağlık.

Selam ve saygılarımla,
Mehmet

Hello Bayram,
Everybody should be doing this in the Middle East. Forget the crude oil.
Well done. Undoubtedly a lot of work involved.
A beauty it is... captured with a lot of depth and at the right moment with the right focus.
TFS
Annick

Dinamismo, eficacia y originalidad en esta nueva toma.
Tengo una especie de "lagartija" de mi zona que si quieres te enviaré para su identificación o por si tuvieras interés en ella; está realizada en las montañas de Los Pirineos, entre Francia y España.
Saludos.

  • Great 
  • foozi Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 2791 W: 0 N: 6696] (25839)
  • [2010-08-08 7:01]

Merhaba MF Prof. Bayram,
to be handsome or not is the nature,but putting it in a very nice and elegant pose is the state of art. I like the style you capture. A slight turn and a selective focus indeed render a dramatic composition. The gradual blurr adds beauty to this wonderful capture.
Very well thought shot .

Regards,
Foozi

Hello Bayram,
Just an other good lizard photo, I like the narrow DOF on the head,
Well done
Albert

Hi, Bayram,
A face to face really amazing. Congratulations.
Best regards,
Ferran

  • Great 
  • tuslaw Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2754 W: 282 N: 4931] (19883)
  • [2010-08-08 12:05]

Hello Bayram,
A very good frontal shot of this particular lizard. He seems to be checking you out at the moment. Love the very low POV and the way you can see the entire lizard as it seems to streach off into the BG. I also like the side lighting effect. Great work!!
Ron

Hello Bayram,
Wonderful image and interesting creature taken from a very good POV with excellent light and great DOF. Well done!
Regards,
Mircea

  • Great 
  • Heaven Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 996 W: 123 N: 2341] (7912)
  • [2010-08-08 22:40]

Dear Bayram!

Your series about the Lizard is not only impressive, but also beautiful. I would like to congratulate you for this first post on TrekNature. The effect of this lizard looking at the viewer is very strong and the somehow dark lighting creates a particular effect.

Kind regards

Markus

Bayram hocam, bu ne güzel bakıştır böyle:) adeta kesmiş sizi:)
çok da hoş bakmış tmkinli haliyle.
Emeğinize sağlık.
Naşit

Merhaba Hocam,
Favoriniz olan Phoenicolacerta grubundan Hatay kertenkelesinin harika bir fotosu. Kertenkeleleri böyle meraklı ve hayran baktırabilmek size özgü bir yetenek.:)) Saygı ve sevgilerimle,
Ömer.

Bayram hocam müthiş bir açı ve manalı bakışlarıyla bizi troodica'nın Suriyeli kuzenini çok güzel çekmişsiniz. Sanki ona tanıdık gelmişsiniz gibi bakmış size:)
Emeğinize sağlık. Saygılar,
Nazım

Hellow Bayram,
What a great comical pose from this little lizard.Its almost as if he wants his passport photo! Good timing MF.
erwin...

  • Great 
  • dolors (33)
  • [2010-08-09 9:14]

Hello Bayram,
Between curiosity and surprise. A beautiful expression.
Greetings,
Dolors

Hallo Bayram
This one is really giving you the eye! Great capture of this Syrian Lizard from close by and looking straight at you. Great eye contact. Details of the big eye and the scales in the face is seen with great clarity and is lovely to look at. Thanks for sharing. Best regards.
Anna

Hello Bayram
I have the impression that he just ask you something. Its appearance is beautiful interrogative.
Thank you for this reptile with short fingers ...
friendships
Laurent

hello Bayram

WOW ! a great shot, the frontal POV and appropriate
framing gives that GREAT eye-contact with you, TFS

Asbed

Selamlar hocam,
haha o nasıl bir bakıştır,
Resmen size göz koymuş.
Ellerinize sağlık süper bir çalışma.

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