REPTILIA: SQUAMATA: AGAMIDAE: Amphibolurus

Amphibolurus nobbi Witten, 1972

Nobb dragon

Photos & text by Dr. Robert Sprackland, taken at Mareeba, Queensland. At right, a brightly marked juvenile dragon.

Range: Arid areas of Queensland, Australia.

Diagnosis:

Description: Head short, nearly round, but with a small acutely pointed tip. Ear openings and moveable eyelids present.  The limbs are long and thin, each with five clawed digits. The body is about twice as long as the thigh. Hind legs are more than twice as long as front legs. Head and body scales are distinctly keeled. The tail is much longer than the head-body length.

Juveniles are light brown with nearly black crossbands. There is a blue-gray vertebral stripe and a pair of white lateral stripes. The lines fade to dull gray in adults, and the crossbands become a lighter shade of brown.

Natural History: These small dragons are terrestrial, and frequently seen basking on fallen logs, fence posts and rocks near trees. They are not particularly wary, and allow very close approach prior to running for cover.

Nobb dragons are passive predators, feeding on small insects that wander within range.

Reproduction: Egg layers.

Taxonomy & Relationships:

Variation:

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