The Dagestan lizard (Darevskia daghestanica) is a rock lizard in the true lizard family (Lacertidae). It has no venom and is harmless to people. According to published measurements, its head and body are about 4.4–5.8 cm long, and its tail is often longer than the head and body combined. Its presence in Georgia has been confirmed in the northeastern mountains. It is also listed as a confirmed species in a 2026 Georgian checklist. Recent records name Tusheti and Mount Tbatana in Akhmeta Municipality. It is not expected in the lowlands of western or southern Georgia. In the past, it was often considered a close relative of the Caucasian lizard (Darevskia caucasica) or one of its subspecies. It is now considered a separate species.
Identification
How to identify Daghestanian Rock Lizard
This is a small rock lizard (Darevskia) with a flattened head. In Georgia, it is found in the mountains of the northeast. Its color does not distinguish it from the Caucasus lizard.
Often confused with
The body is slender and flattened. The head is relatively narrow and flat, and the hind legs are long. According to Roitberg, these features can help distinguish it from caucasica where both occur, though not at a glance from a photo. The scales on its back are smooth or slightly raised. The Tbatana illustrations show the scales on the head and the plates in front of the rear opening; these details are often hard to see in photos taken in the wild.
The back is often grayish brown, yellowish brown, or ash gray. Two parallel rows of dark spots or a netlike pattern may run along the spine. Sometimes the pattern is faint or absent. The pale stripes on the sides often do not reach the scales on top of the head. Identification guides list this as one of the species’ features, but it does not appear in every individual. Color alone cannot distinguish Darevskia species.
It is small. One specimen from Levashi in Dagestan measures 49 mm from head to body. In inland Dagestan, larger females measure 43.95–56.20 mm from head to body. The tail is often longer than the head and body together, but the Levashi specimen’s tail is damaged, so its full length is unknown. Data on specimens from Georgia have not been published here.
The Caucasian lizard (D. caucasica) has a continuous range along the upper Terek River. It has also been reported near Tbatana. Color alone cannot distinguish caucasica from daghestanica. caucasica often has more distinct stripes along its sides. Where the two lizards meet, caucasica has more scales around the middle of its body and on its belly, and more pores on its thighs. Its head is narrower and flatter. In the wild, location is the most reliable clue: daghestanica has been reported in Tusheti, while caucasica has been reported in Truso and Zakagori. The Artvin lizard (D. derjugini) belongs to the same genus, but it lives on the ground in forests rather than on steep rock faces. The Adjarian lizard (D. mixta) is associated with areas in the west and center where species’ ranges meet; it is not a substitute for the Tusheti lizard.
The 2026 list considers this species biologically confirmed. Recent records name Tusheti (barcode) and Mount Tbatana in Akhmeta Municipality (figure). Do not expect to find it throughout the country: it is not expected in the western and southern lowlands. Color will not distinguish it from the Caucasian lizard (D. caucasica); in the field, location is the safe way to tell them apart.
Two recent locations have been reported for this species in Georgia. A 2026 list includes genetic data from Tusheti and an image of the head scales of an individual found on Mount Tbatana in Akhmeta Municipality. Both places are in the mountains of Kakheti. The Kakheti marking on this atlas map refers only to these places. It does not mean the species occurs in the Alazani Valley or on Kakheti’s dry plains. The species is found in moderately dry, rocky mountain areas: on cliffs, slopes and in river valleys. Its main range lies on the northern slopes of the Greater Caucasus, from Dagestan to the Darial Gorge in North Ossetia. Farther south, it also occurs in Tusheti and Azerbaijan. In 1963, Darevsky described a separate population in the Greater Liakhvi Valley, above Java (Dzau), on the road to the Roki Pass. Its presence was confirmed again in 2021. This is a separate population to the southwest; its record does not apply to all of Shida Kartli, so the map does not show the species across the whole region. According to a 2026 discussion, the ranges of this species and caucasica connect without a gap in the upper Terek area, where they may interbreed. This identifies an area where they meet; it does not mean the species has been confirmed separately in every local community there. Published information places the caucasica group at roughly 500–3200 m. A measured elevation range for populations in Georgia has not been published separately. The species has only exceptionally been reported in forests without cliffs. Usually, look for it on cliffs or rocks.
Biology
Diet, behavior, and conservation
Diet
No information has been published about food found in the stomachs of this species in Georgia. Caucasian rock lizards mainly eat small animals without backbones, including spiders, beetles, flies, grasshopper-like insects and ants. This species probably eats similar food, but exactly what it eats in Georgia has not yet been established.
Behavior
This rock lizard is active during the day. Its flattened body helps it slip into crevices. It lives mainly on rocks but is also found away from them. It has also been recorded in forest where rocks were present. No separate information has been published on when it is active during the day or across the seasons in Georgia. It lays eggs. In inland Dagestan, females with swollen bellies were caught from mid to late May. They laid eggs from late May to mid-June, 1–5 at a time. Under artificial conditions, the eggs took 36–51 days to hatch. These dates were recorded in Dagestan and should not be treated as established dates for Tusheti. The lizard can shed its tail, so a short or regrown tail does not mean it is a different species.
Conservation
According to the IUCN assessment published in 2009 (based on data through 2008), the species is considered of Least Concern globally: its population is probably large, and no rapid decline is apparent. It is not included in Georgia’s 2014 Red List (Decree No. 190); the Turkish, Dahl’s and Adjara lizards are the Darevskia species listed there. The 2026 list considers its presence confirmed by biological evidence, though information about its distribution is only moderately reliable. Large genetic differences have been described between groups living in different places, but the list does not use subspecies names. The isolated group in the Liakhvi area is found in a small area, so local threats there may differ. There is no separate national assessment. Do not take it from the wild.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
Short answers to the most important questions about Daghestanian Rock Lizard.
Yes. The 2026 list treats the presence of this species as confirmed. That does not mean it is found throughout the country.
It is currently known from Tusheti and Mount Tbatana in Akhmeta Municipality. A separate group, isolated from the others, has also been described in the Greater Liakhvi valley above Java. Do not look for it on the western and southern plains.
No. It has no venom. Don’t pick it up — its tail can easily break off.
They cannot be told apart by color alone. You need to know where they were found and, if possible, count their scales. Tusheti is named as a location for this species, and Truso for caucasica. Both may occur near Tbatana.
It is a small lizard. Published sources give a head-and-body length of about 4.4–5.8 cm. Specimens collected in Georgia were not measured here.
It probably eats small animals without backbones. No information about its stomach contents in Georgia has been published.
It is not listed in Georgia’s 2014 Red List. Globally, it is classified as Least Concern (LC).
References
Sources
References
Sources
- Tarkhnishvili et al. 2026 — Annotated checklist of Georgia's amphibians and reptiles
- Darevsky 1967 — Скальные ящерицы Кавказа
- Doronin 2014 — Review of type specimens of Darevskia (caucasica)
- Doronin et al. 2021 — Phylogeography of the Darevskia (caucasica) complex
- Doronin et al. 2022 — New records of Darevskia in the Caucasus
- Roitberg 1994 — Morphological analysis of L. caucasica and L. c. daghestanica in the contact zone
- Tarkhnishvili, Gabelaia & Adriaens 2020 — Phenotypic divergence in Caucasian rock lizards
- Kidov et al. 2024 — Reproduction of Darevskia daghestanica in Intra-Mountain Dagestan
- Tuniyev et al. 2009 — IUCN Red List, Darevskia daghestanica
- Tuniyev & Ananjeva 2024 — High herpetological diversity in the Caucasian Ecoregion
- საქართველოს მთავრობის დადგენილება №190 (2014) — წითელი ნუსხა
- The Reptile Database
Species profiles are compiled from peer-reviewed literature and established biodiversity databases, and are reviewed as new taxonomic and conservation data become available.
Related guides
Continue with related pages
Darevskia derjugini
Derjugin's Lizard
Lagodekhi, Sioni, Mulakhi, Racha, Baniskhevi, Kintrishi
Darevskia praticola
Meadow Lizard
Eastern and central Georgia — Sioni, Tushurebi
Darevskia adjarica
Ajarian Rock Lizard
Adjara (Shuakhevi) and Abastumani
Darevskia alpina
Alpine Rock Lizard
Western Greater Caucasus — literature; no named locality in the checklist