Agama savignii Duméril & Bibron, 1837

1837 Agama savignii Duméril & Bibron, Erpétologie générale, ou Histoire naturelle complète des reptiles, vol. 4: 508.

Name-bearing type. Zoologisches Forschungsmuseum A. Koenig ZFMK 77470, from Egypt, El Arish; leg. Nicolà Lutzmann, 4.X.2001, neotype by present designation. See above for the original holotype, now lost. Type locality: El Arish, northern Sinai, Egypt.

Proposed status. Trapelus savignii (Duméril & Bibron, 1837).

Diagnosis: Trapelus savignii is a medium sized species of the genus [largest known specimen from Egypt SVL 123 mm (Anderson 1898)]. With a combination of characters the species can be distinguished from other Trapelus species existing within its distribution range:

from T. mutabilis and T. pallidus the species differs in processing a gular pouch in males and in having a homogeneous body scalation;

from T. schmitzi the species differs in processing a gular pouch in males;

from T. tournevillei the species differs in processing no dark stripes on the belly;

from T. ruderatus the species differs in processing a homogeneous shaped body scalation, sometimes intermixed with enlarged scales;

from T. flavimaculatus the species differs especially in the nuptial colouration of adult males. T. savignii develops a blue throat and flanks whereas T. flavimaculatus is completely blue with white spots. Additionally in T. flavimaculatus the scales on the back are much larger than the scales on the flank.

Coloration in life is uniformly sandy grey with brown transverse bands on the body and a barred tail. The five transverse bands on the body are interrupted by a yellowish stripe and whitish lines. Additionally two transverse bands are on the interorbital area. The belly is white. Adult males get a special coloration under nuptial conditions: throat and flanks bright to violet blue, the flanks with interspersed white spots. Also pregnant females have a special coloration in which the dorsal bands become brick red.