Jacky dragon facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Jacky dragon |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Amphibolurus
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| Species: |
muricatus
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The jacky dragon (Amphibolurus muricatus) is a type of lizard that lives in southeastern Australia. It was one of the first Australian reptiles to be officially named. An English zoologist named George Shaw first described it in a book published in London in 1790. This lizard is easy to spot because of its bright yellow mouth and a cool crest of scales along its back. Also, the temperature of its nest decides if its babies will be male or female! People also call it the blood-sucker, stonewalker, or tree dragon.
The Wergaia people, who live in the Wimmera region of Victoria, call this dragon nganurganity. In 2017, a star called Sigma Canis Majoris was even named "Unurgunite" (which is like nganurganity). This was done because the Wergaia people connect the star to the jacky dragon in their traditional stories.
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About Jacky Dragons
The jacky dragon is one of about 70 types of dragons (Agamidae family) found in Australia. These lizards are usually active during the day (this is called diurnal). When they need to move fast, they often run upright on their back legs.
Most dragons have rough, non-shiny scales. They also have wide, thick, and fleshy tongues. Their legs are well-developed, especially their back legs, which are longer and have five claws. Most dragons can't drop their tails if they are caught, unlike some other lizards. They also have special pores on their legs or near their tail. Agamidae dragons lay eggs (this is called oviparous) and usually bury them in the ground.
What Jacky Dragons Look Like
Jacky dragons can be pale grey or dark brown. They have dark patches along the middle of their back. These dark spots are broken up by lighter patches that sometimes join together to form a stripe from their arm to their hip. They have a dark brown bar between their eye and their ear. Unlike some other dragons, they don't have a dark stripe between their nose and eye. Their lips and lower jaw are usually lighter than the rest of their head. A cool fact is that jacky dragons have a bright yellow lining inside their mouths!
Some jacky dragons have orange-red corners inside their mouths. This might be why they are sometimes called "blood-suckers."
Jacky dragons are easy to tell apart because of their five crests, which are like rows of raised scales. They have a crest on their neck that continues down their back. They also have two other rows of scales on each side of their back. Their back legs are covered in large, spiky scales and small, ridged scales. They also have spiky scales on the sides of their necks. Their ear drum is a medium size and easy to see.
An average jacky dragon is about 9 inches (22.86 cm) long, including its tail. But some have been seen as long as 17.5 inches (44.45 cm)! Their tail is usually twice as long as their body. On average, a jacky dragon weighs about 30 grams. The biggest ones can weigh around 67 grams. You can often tell males from females by their heads; males usually have noticeably larger heads.
Reproduction and Life Cycle
Female jacky dragons that are ready to lay eggs (called gravid) can be found from October to February. Females can lay up to eight eggs at a time. Bigger females tend to lay more eggs in a clutch. Most adult females lay at least one clutch every summer. They usually lay their eggs under bark or decaying plants over sandy areas. The first baby dragons start to hatch in late December and are common by February. Right after hatching, young jacky dragons are usually about three inches long.
The temperature of the nest decides if the baby dragons will be male or female. This is called temperature-dependent sex determination (TSD). If the nest is very cool or very warm, the babies will be female. If the nest is a medium temperature, the babies will be male. This means that young dragons from eggs laid earlier in the season are mostly male. Scientists think that TSD in lizards might help make sure the babies have a good chance to reproduce when they grow up.
Jacky dragons grow up quickly. Females can lay eggs within one year of hatching. The average jacky dragon lives for about four years, which is shorter than many other lizards.
Where Jacky Dragons Live
Distribution
Jacky dragons live along the southeastern coast of Australia. You can find them as far north as central Queensland, in New South Wales, Victoria, and in the southeastern part of South Australia.
Habitat
Jacky dragons usually live in dry sclerophyll forests and woodlands. They are found in the eastern highlands, but not in very cold, high-altitude areas. They spend some time in trees (they are semiarboreal) and are often seen resting on fallen logs or standing trees.
What Jacky Dragons Eat and What Eats Them
Jacky dragons mostly eat insects. This includes flies, moths, caterpillars, grasshoppers, and small beetles.
Many animals hunt young jacky dragons. These can include small mammals like wild cats or rats, and other reptiles. Adult jacky dragons can be hunted by birds that fly, such as kookaburras, ravens, black-shouldered kites, and Nankeen kestrels. The dragons use their eyesight to spot these flying predators.
Jacky Dragon Behaviour
Jacky dragons are very fast lizards. Like many other dragons, they sometimes run almost upright on their back legs when they are being chased. When the weather is cool and wet, they bury themselves in the sand or hide under a bush. They rarely go into water, but they can swim if they need to.
When two jacky dragons fight, they circle each other while standing upright. They flatten their bodies from side to side to look bigger. They usually try to attack each other's tails. Jacky dragons also have many ways to show off their territory. These include waving their tails, raising or lowering their bodies, bobbing their heads, waving their arms, and making their skin darker.
Jacky dragons use different movements, called "displays," to talk to other jacky dragons (their conspecifics). For example, a "push-up display" starts with tail flicks, arm waves (back and forth), a push-up, and a special rocking of their whole body. These unique movements are different from other things that happen in their environment, like plants blowing in the wind. This is important because jacky dragons rely a lot on movement to get information from their surroundings.
Conservation Status
The jacky dragon is currently not in danger of extinction. There are many jacky dragons and other common reptiles in Australia. This is partly because undisturbed areas have different types of ground and groundcover, which is important for reptile conservation.
