Diurnal. On an extremely hot day (+50°C) animals started their activity after sunset and remained active to almost darkness.
Data Deficient
Largest Egyptian specimen has a SVL of 46 mm. A slender lizard with a rather long tail (average tail/SVL ratio = 2.5). Snout rather long; 5 supralabials anterior to the subocular. Temporals rather large and slightly carinated; tympanic shield absent or indiscernible. Dorsal scales medium-sized, granular or subimbri-cate, slightly carinated. Average number of dorsals at mid-body 36 (range 32-38) and ventrals 10, respectively; average number of femoral pores 12 (11-14) (based on 8 Egyptian specimens). Dorsal side of tibia covered with clearly keeled scales. Subcaudals strongly keeled. Dorsal surfaces light sandy gray, striated with 4 low contrast dark and light strips, the central two usually including darker spots. Tail straw-colored, plain. Venter white. Hemipenis large, with two lobes. Juveniles tend to be darker than adults with stronger striation. Tail yellowish in juveniles.
Known from the general Siwa region, from Shayata near the borders with Libya, to as far east as Tabaghbagh, in the western end of the Qattara Depression. Tracks probably belonging to this species were observed in Alhagi graecorum scrubland at Bahariya Oasis and near Bir Karawin in Farafra Oasis, but no animals were observed. Future searches might reveal its presence in these and other suitable habitats in the Western Desert.
Northern Africa, from the Western Sahara of Morocco to Egypt, south to Mali and Niger. Not recorded yet from Libya but the record of animals only some 5 km from the Libyan borders indicate its certain presence in that country.
Inhabits soft-sand biotopes with fairly good vegetation cover. In Egypt it has only been recorded from the neighborhood of oases. Closely attached to complex microhabitats created by dense desert vegetation, with particular preference for the spinose bushes of Alhagi graecorum and the grass Stipagmstis sp. In some aspects of its ecology it resembles populations of M. olivieri inhabiting the dunes of North Sinai; rather reclusive, spending much of its time within dense vegetation.
Uncommon to common, but very localized. Its habitats are rapidly eroded by the expanding land reclamation schemes in Siwa Oasis and other oases, which are targeting marginal lands on the outskirts of these oases. These are the richest habitats for herpetofauna and other animal and plant life in the entire Western Desert.
Mesalina pasteuri, also known commonly as Pasteur's lizard, is a species of sand-dwelling lizard in the family Lacertidae. The species is endemic to North Africa.
The specific name, pasteuri, is in honor of French biologist Georges Pasteur.[3]
M. pasteuri occurs in Algeria, Egypt, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Niger, and Western Sahara.[2]
The preferred habitat of M. pasteuri is desert.[1]
M. pasteuri may attain a snout-to-vent length (SVL) of 5 cm (2.0 in). The holotype, which measures 3.9 cm (1.5 in) SVL, has a tail 9.2 cm (3.6 in) long.[4]
Mesalina pasteuri, also known commonly as Pasteur's lizard, is a species of sand-dwelling lizard in the family Lacertidae. The species is endemic to North Africa.
