Tropidosaura cottrelli, also known commonly as Cottrell's mountain lizard, is a species of lizard in the family Lacertidae. The species is native to southern Africa.
Etymology The specific name, cottrelli, is in honor of South African ornithologist John Awdry Cottrell, who collected the holotype.Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . (Tropidosaura cottrelli, p. 60).
Geographic range T. cottrelli is found in Lesotho and South Africa.
Habitat The preferred natural habitat of T. cottrelli is grassland, at altitudes of .
Description T. cottrelli is large for its genus. Adults have a snout-to-vent length (SVL) of .Branch, Bill (2004). Field Guide to Snakes and other Reptiles of Southern Africa. Third Revised edition, Second impression. Sanibel Island, Florida: Ralph Curtis Books. 399 pp. . (Tropidosaura cottrelli, p. 175 + Plate 62).
Reproduction T. cottrelli is oviparous. An adult female may lay as many as four eggs.
References
Further reading Hewitt J (1925). "On some new species of Reptiles and Amphibians from South Africa". Records of the Albany Museum, Grahamstown 3 (4): 343–370. (Basutosaura cottrelli, new species, p. 356).