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Western green lizard


Western green lizard
Photo Information
Copyright: Bengt Falke (falke) Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 158 W: 17 N: 450] (1614)
Genre: Animals
Medium: Color
Date Taken: 2007-04-07
Categories: Reptiles
Camera: Canon 400D, Canon 300/4 L IS USM + EF 1.4 ext. II
Exposure: f/6.3, 1/800 seconds
More Photo Info: [view]
Photo Version: Original Version
Date Submitted: 2007-05-13 11:05
Viewed: 695
Points: 20
[Note Guidelines] Photographer's Note
We went to the Arés bird reserve on the north side of bassain d'Arcachon trying to spot some waders.

We had no luck in spoting new species there, but instead we got some close encounters with a couple of lizard species and some other nice experiences. This is jung male of the western green lizard (Lacerta bilineata/västlig smaragdödla), that we saw a couple of.

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Geographic info:

This is from the Arés bird reserve on the north side of bassain d'Arcachon, to the west of Bordeaux.

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About the specie:

Habitat: Dry savanna or semi-arid
Diet: Insectivorous
Adult Size: 30-40 cm (12-16 inches)
Lifespan: 3-8 years
Native To: Southern Europe to the Ukraine

Until recently, this lizard and the Eastern Green Lizard (Lacerta viridis) were considered a single species that was commonly referred to as the "European Green Lizard."

Lizards belonging to the two species look very similar as adults: the western has a more uniformly colored back and the eastern is slightly spottier. Both species are closely related to the Turkish lizards, Lacerta media and Lacerta pamphylica.

The male's throat is often blue when he is reproductively active. Some females may indicate that they are ready to mate by waving their arms.

The Western Green Lizard is found in southern Europe, from Portugal to the Italian Alps, while the Eastern Green Lizard lives in Germany, the Balkans and the
southern Ukraine.

This is a rather big lizard and males of both species are somewhat larger and more brightly colored than females.

About two-thirds of their body length is tail. Like many lizards, they will lose their tails to avoid capture. Both species tend to live in forests and scrub land with dense vegetation.

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Technical information:

I took this in rawformat and used Adobe Lightroom for some adjustments before the edit in Photoshop CS2 as my CS3 beta expired and have not yet received the sharp version

Just a little crop and a bit hue
Sharpening with Photokit capture sharpener, nothing more.
demeve, uleko, claudine, marjan, horia, danbachmann has marked this note useful
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Critiques [Translate]

  • Great 
  • Argus Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2707 W: 139 N: 7809] (24333)
  • [2007-05-13 11:30]

Hej Bengt,
Nice close-up of the Western Green Lizard showing good details of the head against a contrasting neutral Bg with fine lighting.
It would be nice to see the whole lizard as well.
TFS and best wishes, Ivan

  • Great 
  • demeve Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 514 W: 8 N: 1128] (4152)
  • [2007-05-13 11:37]

Hello Bengt, what a nice picture the collors and details are amazing, very sharp too you did a fantastic job..have a nice day..

Très belle photo, excellent.

  • Great 
  • Jamesp Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 1294 W: 0 N: 5036] (15024)
  • [2007-05-13 12:01]

Hi Bengt

Lovely cloe-up of this lizard. The light, focus and colours are excellent.

James

  • Great 
  • uleko Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2543 W: 170 N: 7734] (24475)
  • [2007-05-13 12:36]

Hej Bengt,
Excellent close-up of this beautiful lizard with great focus on the eye. Sharp details and very nice natural colours. Very nicely cropped too.
TFS and regards, Ulla

  • Great 
  • marjan Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 483 W: 10 N: 362] (2631)
  • [2007-05-13 16:17]

Hej Bengt, nice shot , cleare , bright and excelent intro.
Majran

Parades Bengt. Very impressive picture. Excellent coloured presentation .Picture is good arrected. Very well done. tfs. Stev

Hello Bengt,
What a nice face this specie has! I love those colors, details, POV and composition a lot and I think that this animal is beautiful and looks a little mischievous. The light in its eye is great! Well done and TFS,
Claudine

Very beautiful photo. I wish I could see this lizard on my own eyes. Thanks to you we can see every detail on lizard's head.

  • Great 
  • horia Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2117 W: 222 N: 3896] (12933)
  • [2007-05-26 16:49]

Hi Bengt

I only saw this little fellow now and i simply love him!
I saw plenty Lacerta viridis and also some Lacerta trilineata, but i never had the chace to see this lovely species. I hope i will :)
Until then, this is a charming portrait, full of sharp details and exceptional textures.
The natural colors are also terrific and the low POV gave you a beautiful perspective in the BG.

Bravo and TFS
Horia

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