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What Is a Frilled Lizard?

Australia has a reputation for being home to a variety of odd creatures, and the frilled lizard, Chlamydosaurus kingii is certainly one of them. This reptile, with its flap of skin that encircles its head giving it its name, lives in the northern portions of the continent. The frilled lizard uses its frilled neck to try to bluff its way out of a dangerous situation, but the lizard has other ways it tries to avoid trouble.

Identification
- While the frilled lizard has an array of color combinations, depending upon which region of Australia it occurs in, the adults usually are about 36 inches long. These reptiles weigh approximately one pound. The sole area of this creature featuring bright colors is the pleated flaps of skin about the neck; these often include red and orange scales, notes Outback Australia Travel Secrets. These colors are not visible unless the frill opens, which the lizard accomplishes by opening the mouth as widely as possible. Muscles in the jaws and tongue, attached to cartilage in the frill, open it up much as an umbrella deploys.
Habitat and Diet
- Loss of habitat, the clearing of land and the effects of pollution reduced the range of the frilled lizard in Australia. The reptiles now occur mainly along the northern portion of the country, where tropical forests and temperature woodlands exist, as well as open grassy savannah regions. Frilled lizards spend the majority of their time in trees, searching for such food items as ants, cicadas, spiders, small mammals and termites. The lizard will venture onto the ground in search of food, but quickly retreat to the relative safety of a tree when feeling threatened.
Defense
- Facing danger, the frill comes up and the lizard hisses at its enemy.
  
  Frilled lizards normally try to blend into their environment by remaining motionless when a threat occurs. They will lie down and use their bland colors to fade into the background. When confronted by humans while in a tree, the frilled lizard attempts to keep the trunk between the person and itself, making it difficult to see. If caught on the ground in the open, the frill comes up and the lizard hisses, slaps its tail, bares its teeth and rises up on its hind feet to intimidate its foe. If it must, it will bite, but usually if the predator continues its attack, the frilled lizard turns and runs for the closest tree -- using only its hind legs.
Breeding and Threats
- Frilled lizards mate during the rainy season in Australia, usually around September. The female deposits between eight and 23 small eggs in a nest dug in the ground. The female then leaves the eggs, which eventually hatch. The major dangers faced by the frilled lizard include dingoes, snakes, birds of prey, other lizards and feral cats. The feral cat is a considerable problem for the frilled lizard, which is no match for such an accomplished killer.

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