Agama cristata and Agama insularis are two poorly known West African species that are generally regarded either as dubious or synonyms. Agama cristata was described from a single specimen that was partially mutilated, thus preventing a precise count of midbody scale rows. There have been no further records for this species until it was considered as a senior synonym of A. insularis, a species that was until recently known only from Los Islands, off the coast of Guinea. A particularity of the type of A. cristata is the presence of two black spots on each side of the neck. During a field trip in southern Mali, I found a specimen with the same characteristics as the type of A. cristata. Further sampling provided 16 additional similar specimens. Comparison of pattern and meristic data indicates than A. cristata and A. insularis are two distinct species that can be distinguished easily both on pattern and midbody scale count, 71–90 for A. cristata versus 111–147 for A. insularis. Both species also differ by their geographic distribution and habitat.