Pondichéry Fan-throated Lizard

The Pondichéry fan-throated lizard is an agamid lizard of eastern peninsular India. Studies in 2016 split what was once thought a widespread species into several species in two genera, Sitana and Sarada. Sitana species have an enlarged projecting scale on the rear of the hind thigh. It lives mostly on the ground in open patches in thin forest and sometimes runs on its hind legs when disturbed. It is brown with a series of dark spots along the middle of the back, and the tail is round and slender (Wikipedia, general species account).

It reaches a maximum length of about 20 cm, of which the tail is about 13 cm. After mating, females dig small holes in soft soil to lay eggs and leave them to hatch after a few weeks. Live-bearing has also been reported in females from the Madurai and Virudhunagar areas of Tamil Nadu. Because of the 2016 split, older records under this name may belong to other species.