Common Name:Giant Russian Legless Lizard

Latin name: Ophisaurus apodus

Size: Adult legless lizards range in size from three to four feet in length weighing 11 to 21 ounces.

General appearance: The first apparent feature of the sheltopusik is the lack of legs. To the untrained eye it can resemble a snake. It does have eyelids, external ears, a large tail and uniform scale size like most other lizards. It is brown to olive green in appearance with a lateral fold that runs the length of the body, but not the tail. The tail often makes up half the length of the lizard. The tail can demonstrate autonomy (breaking) but rarely regenerates the tail back. Fortunately this lizard does not readily drop its tail. O. apodus is the only European member of this genus and is the only member that also demonstrates vestigial limbs in the form of spurs near its vent.

In the wild, these legless lizards come from a fairly dry environment and often can be found along rocky hillsides with many places available for cover.