Platysaurus intermedius

Common flat lizard
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Family:	Cordylidae
Genus:	Platysaurus
Species:	P. intermedius
Binomial name
Platysaurus intermedius Matschie, 1891

The common flat lizard (Platysaurus intermedius) is a species of lizard in the Cordylidae family. This lizard has 9 subspecies, all living in southern Africa.

The females and juveniles of all subspecies of P. intermedius have black scales, with white stripes on their backs. The bellies are brown, but the outer edges are white. Adult males have different colorations for each subspecies.

Common flat lizards are the most widely distributed and common Platysaurus. These lizards live under exfoliating, or weathering, rocks. Their preferred types of rock are granite, sandstone, and quartzite. These lizards can be found in moderately moist savannahs, as well as rock outcrops. It ranges throughout Zimbabwe, North Province, Mpumalanga, southern Malawi, eastern Botswana, Swaziland, Mozambique, and northern KwaZulu-Natal. This area includes the Kalahari Desert, and several large river drainage systems.

Nine subspecies are recognized:

Males of P. i. whilhelmi are green or brown on their backs. White spots are also present. Their tails begin red and change to yellow at the ends. Their bellies are mostly blue, but the centers are black. This subspecies can be found in southern Mpumalanga, a province of South Africa. P. i. wilhelmi may not be a subspecies of Platysaurus intermedius, as it possibly is closer to the Lebombo flat lizard, Platysaurus lebomboensis. Males have been found to run shorter distances and go into hiding from a predator earlier than females.

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Wikipedia