Hobbies And Interests
Physical Characteristics
Adult frilled lizards grow between 2 and 3 feet long from nose to tail with males slightly larger than females, and their tails make up approximately two-thirds of their length. Their scales are gray-brown, and their legs are long and powerful. The mouth lining is yellow or pink around their sharp teeth, and the frilled lizard uses the color contrast to startle potential predators enough to run away. Adult males weigh up to 2 lbs, while females typically only reach 1 lb.
The Frill
The frill is mostly yellow with orange around the head and spans up to 12 inches across when fully open. The frill's structure and movement relies on cartilaginous lines that connect into the jaw muscles, so the lizard must open its mouth widely to open the frill completely. Because they are cold-blooded, frilled lizards move about during the day when they are warm. To cool off, they open the frill, increasing their surface area and heat loss.
Habitats
Because of their diet, frilled lizards typically live in trees in grasslands and dry forests. They spend most of their time in the trees, but they climb down and navigate the ground for addition food, particularly after rain. Frilled lizards eat insects, spiders and small lizards. If cornered on the ground, frilled lizards stand on their hind legs to confront the predators and run short distances on these two legs to hide in the trees.
Life Cycle
For frilled lizards, mating season coincides with wet season from October to May. The territorial males may use their frill to attract females. Females lay 8-23 eggs at a time and may mate twice in a season. The eggs lie uncovered in sandy soil surrounded by grass and natural debris for 90 days. The adults provide no assistance or parenting, so the newly hatched frilled lizards must survive on their own. The lizards live alone unless it is mating season.