1 September β 14 November
the coastal calendar, unshifted
Shaded dry-stone walls and leaf litter, not open rock; prefers damp, north-facing corners.
A Balkan endemic, and the male's orange-blue breeding colour in April is as strong as anything in the European herpetofauna. Two small clutches a year, both hidden deep in a wall β which is why old dry-stone walls matter more here than any reserve boundary.
photos, sightings and recordings, off this site
where this species is on the list
| Phase | When | Length | What it means |
|---|---|---|---|
| wintering in cover | 15 November β 19 February | 97 days | Reptile dormancy β sluggish rather than truly asleep, and broken by warm spells. |
| going about the year | 20 February β 31 March | 40 days | Feeding, holding territory, doing nothing the calendar singles out. |
| courting | 1 April β 30 April | 30 days | Song, display, fighting, scent-marking β pairs forming or reaffirming. |
| on eggs | 1 May β 30 June | 61 days | Clutch laid and being incubated, or buried and left to the sun. |
| raising young | 1 July β 31 August | 62 days | Dependent young in the nest, den or burrow, being fed. |
| young dispersing | 1 September β 14 November | 75 days | Young leaving for good, looking for a territory of their own. |