NL·0244Herbarium of the Nature Library
- Name
- Chlamydosaurus kingii
- Family
- Agamidae
- Native to
- Northern Australia (Kimberley, Top End, Cape York) and southern New Guinea
- Habitat
- Tropical savanna, Open woodland
Frilled lizard
Chlamydosaurus kingii
Also calledFrilled dragon · Frill-necked lizard · Bicycle lizard (Australian)
A tree-dwelling dragon of northern Australia and New Guinea that, when alarmed, opens a huge ruff of skin around its head, gapes a pink-yellow mouth and hisses. If that fails it runs off on its hind legs.
The frilled lizard, also known commonly as the frilled agama, frillneck lizard, frill-necked lizard or frilled dragon, is a species of lizard in the family Agamidae. The species is native to northern Australia and southern New Guinea and is the only member of the genus Chlamydosaurus. Its common names refer to the large frill around its neck, which usually stays folded against the lizard's body. The frilled lizard grows to 90 cm (35 in) from head to tail tip and can weigh 600 g (1.3 lb). Males are larger and more robust than females. The lizard's body is generally grey, brown, orangish-brown, or black in colour. The frills have red, orange, yellow, or white colours. Wikipedia
What it can do
- iSpreads a frill up to ~30 cm across, supported by cartilage rods from its jaw
- iiRuns bipedally at speed on its hind legs
- iiiSpends most of its time in trees, coming down to hunt insects after rains
In the field
Field marks
- aLarge, loose frill folded around the neck like a cape
- bGrey to brown or reddish body, often with darker mottling
- cLong tail and long hind legs
- dMouth lining pink or yellow
- Not to be confused with
- Bearded dragons (Pogona) have a spiny throat pouch rather than a free frill and live mostly further south. Water dragons have a crest but no frill.
- Where to see it
- Kakadu and Litchfield national parks (Northern Territory), the Kimberley, Cape York; most often seen on tree trunks or roads in the wet season
- When
- Most visible in the wet season (November–April)
Life & habits
- Diet
- Insects, spiders, small lizards and mammals
- Habitat
- Tropical savanna woodland, often in eucalyptus trees
- Size
- Up to ~90 cm including tail; males larger
Most active in the wet season, when it comes down to the ground to feed. In the dry season it stays high in trees and is much less active.
Where it lives
Recorded sightings
—
geo-referenced records in GBIF, from museums, herbaria and field observers.
Native range
Northern Australia (Kimberley, Top End, Cape York) and southern New Guinea
Drag the globe to turn it. Dots are where records exist, not a range map; darker means more records.
In the stacks
Searching the stacks…
Every page naming Chlamydosaurus kingii in the Biodiversity Heritage Library →
Marginalia
It appeared on the reverse of the Australian two-cent coin from decimalisation in 1966 until the coin was discontinued in the early 1990s.
Curiosity
Its frill is controlled by jaw muscles: when it opens its mouth wide, the frill opens too.
Kinship
Photographs: iNaturalist contributors under the licences shown. Records: GBIF.org. Historical plates: Source Library (CC BY-SA 4.0; originals public domain). Summary text: Nature Library editors and Wikipedia (CC BY-SA). Medicinal and edibility notes are historical and educational, not advice. iNaturalist taxon 31215.