| Koelliker's glass lizard | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Suborder: | Anguimorpha |
| Family: | Anguidae |
| Genus: | Hyalosaurus Günther, 1873 |
| Species: | H. koellikeri |
| Binomial name | |
| Hyalosaurus koellikeri Günther, 1873 | |
| Synonyms | |
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Koelliker's glass lizard (Hyalosaurus koellikeri), also called commonly the Moroccan glass lizard, is a species of lizard in the family Anguidae. The species is native to western North Africa.
The specific name, koellikeri, is in honor of Swiss histologist Albert von Kölliker.
The natural habitats of Koelliker's glass lizard are temperate forests, shrubland, temperate grassland, and pastureland, at altitudes up to 2,000 m (6,600 ft).
H. koellikeri has no fore limbs, but does have rudimentary hind limbs. Dorsally, it is brownish, with a darker lateral band. Ventrally, it is yellowish.
H. koellikeri has often been historically included within the genus Ophisaurus, but genetic evidence has shown H. koellikeri to be more closely related to Anguis and Pseudopus than to Ophisaurus.
H. koellikeri is oviparous.
H. koellikeri is threatened by habitat loss.