Western Blue-tongued Lizard
Encyclopedia
The Western Blue-tongued Lizard, Tiliqua occipitalis, (also known as the Western Blue-tongued Skink) is a variety of large skink
native to Australia
. The Western Blue-tongued Lizard is one of six species of blue-tongued lizard
found in Australia, though further species are found in New Guinea
and Indonesia
.
The Western Blue-tongued Lizard grows to around 45 cm (17¾ in) in length. It has a brown banded pattern across the body and tail; the underside of the body is usually pale. It has distinctive black marking to the rear of each eye. The body is wide and large in comparison to the size of the legs. As its name suggests, it has a blue tongue, which contrasts with the pink interior of its mouth. When threatened, it may open its mouth and stick out its tongue in a threat display. If the initial display is unsuccessful, and the predator or threat does not retreat, it may hiss and flatten out its body in an attempt to make itself look bigger.
It is diurnal
, hunting for insect
s, spider
s, and snail
s, and foraging for plant
s (particularly berries) and carrion
. It is not an agile lizard, so its prey tends to be slow-moving. It has powerful jaws which allow it break up snail shells and the exoskeleton
s of beetle
s. It is found in grassland
, dune
s, shrubland
s, and sparse woodland
. It rests under leaf-litter or rocks at night, and sometimes uses abandoned rabbit
burrow
s for shelter. Blue-tongued lizards are popular pet
s and can live for up to 30 years in captivity, though the Western Blue-tongued Lizard is extremely uncommon as a pet as it is one of the rarer species.
They give birth to approximately five live young. The young consume the placental membrane immediately after birth, and are precocious and disperse after a few days. The young have bands of yellow and brown on the body and tail.
The Western Blue-tongued Lizard is found chiefly in Western Australia
. It is restricted to the far south in the Northern Territory
, and divided into an eastern and western population in South Australia
. It is listed as "Near Threatened" in Victoria
where it is restricted to the north, and "Threatened" in New South Wales
where it exists as a population to the south-west and in a pocket in the centre of the state. Threats to the species include predation by introduced species such as the Red Fox
and domestic cat, clearance of habitat for agriculture, and destruction of the rabbit warrens that are used for shelter.
Skink
Skinks are lizards belonging to the family Scincidae. Together with several other lizard families, including Lacertidae , they comprise the superfamily or infraorder Scincomorpha...
native to Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. The Western Blue-tongued Lizard is one of six species of blue-tongued lizard
Blue-tongued lizard
Blue tongue lizard redirects here. For the aboriginal Australian myth, see Bluetongue Lizard .Blue-tongued skinks comprise the Australasian genus, Tiliqua, which contains some of the largest members of the skink family . They are commonly called blue-tongued lizards or simply blue-tongues in...
found in Australia, though further species are found in New Guinea
New Guinea
New Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
and Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
.
The Western Blue-tongued Lizard grows to around 45 cm (17¾ in) in length. It has a brown banded pattern across the body and tail; the underside of the body is usually pale. It has distinctive black marking to the rear of each eye. The body is wide and large in comparison to the size of the legs. As its name suggests, it has a blue tongue, which contrasts with the pink interior of its mouth. When threatened, it may open its mouth and stick out its tongue in a threat display. If the initial display is unsuccessful, and the predator or threat does not retreat, it may hiss and flatten out its body in an attempt to make itself look bigger.
It is diurnal
Diurnal animal
Diurnality is a plant or animal behavior characterized by activity during the day and sleeping at night.-In animals:Animals that are not diurnal might be nocturnal or crepuscular . Many animal species are diurnal, including many mammals, insects, reptiles and birds...
, hunting for insect
Insect
Insects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae...
s, spider
Spider
Spiders are air-breathing arthropods that have eight legs, and chelicerae with fangs that inject venom. They are the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total species diversity among all other groups of organisms...
s, and snail
Snail
Snail is a common name applied to most of the members of the molluscan class Gastropoda that have coiled shells in the adult stage. When the word is used in its most general sense, it includes sea snails, land snails and freshwater snails. The word snail without any qualifier is however more often...
s, and foraging for plant
Plant
Plants are living organisms belonging to the kingdom Plantae. Precise definitions of the kingdom vary, but as the term is used here, plants include familiar organisms such as trees, flowers, herbs, bushes, grasses, vines, ferns, mosses, and green algae. The group is also called green plants or...
s (particularly berries) and carrion
Carrion
Carrion refers to the carcass of a dead animal. Carrion is an important food source for large carnivores and omnivores in most ecosystems. Examples of carrion-eaters include vultures, hawks, eagles, hyenas, Virginia Opossum, Tasmanian Devils, coyotes, Komodo dragons, and burying beetles...
. It is not an agile lizard, so its prey tends to be slow-moving. It has powerful jaws which allow it break up snail shells and the exoskeleton
Exoskeleton
An exoskeleton is the external skeleton that supports and protects an animal's body, in contrast to the internal skeleton of, for example, a human. In popular usage, some of the larger kinds of exoskeletons are known as "shells". Examples of exoskeleton animals include insects such as grasshoppers...
s of beetle
Beetle
Coleoptera is an order of insects commonly called beetles. The word "coleoptera" is from the Greek , koleos, "sheath"; and , pteron, "wing", thus "sheathed wing". Coleoptera contains more species than any other order, constituting almost 25% of all known life-forms...
s. It is found in grassland
Grassland
Grasslands are areas where the vegetation is dominated by grasses and other herbaceous plants . However, sedge and rush families can also be found. Grasslands occur naturally on all continents except Antarctica...
, dune
Dune
In physical geography, a dune is a hill of sand built by wind. Dunes occur in different forms and sizes, formed by interaction with the wind. Most kinds of dunes are longer on the windward side where the sand is pushed up the dune and have a shorter "slip face" in the lee of the wind...
s, shrubland
Shrubland
Shrubland, scrubland, scrub or brush is a plant community characterized by vegetation dominated by shrubs, often also including grasses, herbs, and geophytes. Shrubland may either occur naturally or be the result of human activity...
s, and sparse woodland
Woodland
Ecologically, a woodland is a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade. Woodlands may support an understory of shrubs and herbaceous plants including grasses. Woodland may form a transition to shrubland under drier conditions or during early stages of...
. It rests under leaf-litter or rocks at night, and sometimes uses abandoned rabbit
Rabbit
Rabbits are small mammals in the family Leporidae of the order Lagomorpha, found in several parts of the world...
burrow
Burrow
A burrow is a hole or tunnel dug into the ground by an animal to create a space suitable for habitation, temporary refuge, or as a byproduct of locomotion. Burrows provide a form of shelter against predation and exposure to the elements, so the burrowing way of life is quite popular among the...
s for shelter. Blue-tongued lizards are popular pet
Pet
A pet is a household animal kept for companionship and a person's enjoyment, as opposed to wild animals or to livestock, laboratory animals, working animals or sport animals, which are kept for economic or productive reasons. The most popular pets are noted for their loyal or playful...
s and can live for up to 30 years in captivity, though the Western Blue-tongued Lizard is extremely uncommon as a pet as it is one of the rarer species.
They give birth to approximately five live young. The young consume the placental membrane immediately after birth, and are precocious and disperse after a few days. The young have bands of yellow and brown on the body and tail.
The Western Blue-tongued Lizard is found chiefly in Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
. It is restricted to the far south in the Northern Territory
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory is a federal territory of Australia, occupying much of the centre of the mainland continent, as well as the central northern regions...
, and divided into an eastern and western population in South Australia
South Australia
South Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
. It is listed as "Near Threatened" in Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
where it is restricted to the north, and "Threatened" in New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
where it exists as a population to the south-west and in a pocket in the centre of the state. Threats to the species include predation by introduced species such as the Red Fox
Red Fox
The red fox is the largest of the true foxes, as well as being the most geographically spread member of the Carnivora, being distributed across the entire northern hemisphere from the Arctic Circle to North Africa, Central America, and the steppes of Asia...
and domestic cat, clearance of habitat for agriculture, and destruction of the rabbit warrens that are used for shelter.