Least Concern
A small lizard, largest Egyptian specimen has SVL of 44 mm. Snout relatively short, usually with 4 or 5 supralabials anterior to the subocular. Lower eyelid with a window made of 5-8 semi-transparent scales of subequal size, not edged with black pigment. Temporals small, smooth; tympanic shield small and not obvious. Dorsal scales medium-sized, granular, or subimbricate. Average number of dorsals at mid-body 39 (range 38-40) and ventrals 10, respectively; average number of femoral pores 15 (14-16) .Ventral side of lower arm covered with large imbricate scales. Dorsal side of tibia covered with weakly keeled scales. Subcaudals smooth. Dorsal surfaces sandy gray, with a strong striated pattern of longitudinal dark and light stripes, which might include some small ocelli in a few adult specimens. Tail yellowish in young animals. Venter white. Hemipenis large, with two lobes.
Only documented from the delta of Wadi El Gemal, but Mesalina sp. tracks found by the author among halophytic vegetation on the maritime plain near Gebel Elba probably belong to this species. The species probably occupies suitable littoral habitats of the southern Egyptian Red Sea from the Delta of Wadi El Gemal to the Sudanese borders.
Shores of the southern Red Sea on both the Arabian and African sides. Anderson's (1898) records of'"Mesalina guttulata" with clearly striated dorsum and large dorsal scales from the vicinity of Suakin, Sudan, are doubtless referable to M. martini.
In Egypt it has been found on sandy substrate among halophytic vegetation immediately on the Red Sea coast.
Rare and localized. Its coastal habits is being lost and degradedby rapidly expanding tourism developments along the Red Sea shores.
Mesalina martini, also known as Martin's desert racer, is a species of sand-dwelling lizard in the family Lacertidae. It occurs in Yemen, Egypt, Sudan, Eritrea, Ethiopia, and Somalia.[1]
Mesalina martini, also known as Martin's desert racer, is a species of sand-dwelling lizard in the family Lacertidae. It occurs in Yemen, Egypt, Sudan, Eritrea, Ethiopia, and Somalia.
