Podarcis muralis

So-called Lazarus Lizards were a topic in both a diagnostic walk-about and a meeting I was involved with last week. The lizard's common name is influenced by where you stand, literally. If you're an American herpetologist, you would call them European Wall Lizards. If you live in Europe, they are Common Wall Lizards. If you're a native Cincinnatian, you would likely call them Lazarus Lizards.

If you're ever visiting Cincinnati during the dog days of summer, keep your eyes peeled for a fascinating non-native lizard scurrying over rock walls, darting across sidewalks, and lurking in landscaping. These lizards are intriguing because the story of how they got to Cincinnati and their ascent to equal treatment amongst native reptiles is almost unprecedented for reptiles in Ohio.

If you're hiking around Cincinnati on a warm sunny day and spot a lizard scurrying over rock walls or rocky slopes, it's likely to be the non-native European wall lizard (Podarcis muralis).  However, if you ask a Cincinnatian to identify the lizard, they will most likely call it the "Lazarus lizard."