Frill-necked Lizard

Description:

The Australian Frilled Lizard is the most popular of our lizards because of its unusual looks and behavior. It has many other names: Frill Neck or Frilled Neck Lizard, Frilled Dragon, and often it is affectionately dubbed "Frilly". (That's us Aussies, two syllables is all we can handle...)

Habitat:

Australian Frilled Lizards (Chlamydosaurus kingii) belong to the family of dragons, as the name Frilled Dragon indicates (the proper scientific name of the family is Agamidae). They are a fairly big lizard, growing to over 90 cm (ok, the tail makes up about two thirds of that length), and weighing up to half a kilo.

Notes:

If you do spot a Frilled Lizard on a tree it's still near impossible to take a photo: as you approach the tree the lizard moves around the trunk to the other side. And as you go around to the other side the lizard does the same, always remaining exactly on the opposite side, while both of you try to sneak a look at the other... The story is a different one if a Frilled Lizard is on the ground. Again, first it tries to be "invisible". Once a Frill Neck Lizard realises that its cover is blown it changes its strategy: The lizard opens its mouth to expose the strong teeth, which also opens the impressive orange frill, making the lizard look twice as big. In addition it rears up on the hind legs, hisses, thrashes its tail on the ground, and it might even jump towards an attacker hoping to scare them off. My dog was impressed. But if our Frilly Lizard realises that the attacker is not impressed it turns and runs for the nearest tree for safety, using the hind legs only. That's when the "attacker" doubles over laughing... They look so funny when they run...