Thorny Devil

It’s Reptile Awareness Day.

I was stuck for a while…

deciding which reptile to focus on…

and then, I decided

on the Thorny Devil.

 

 

It’s such a cool little lizard!

I watched one once,

dancing from one foot to the other

to ease the burning

of the red hot soil of outback Australia.

(Perhaps it was just looking for food,

water or a mate…) I

t was only small –

but they can grow up to 20 cm. 

(Females are bigger than males.)

Thorny Devils can live for 20 years. 

They have to be pretty good hiders

to avoid being eaten that long!

But then, why would an animal

want to eat it,

when this lizard

is covered in hard spikes?

(Birds and goannas will give it a go!)

The Thorny Devil is coloured to help it

 blend in with the sandy soils,

rocky landscape of red, red dirt.

They are lighter coloured

in the warmer weather

and darker during the cooler months.

The thorns along their body

trap and direct water

to their mouth…

a clever thing

for a desert animal to do!

When it rains,

its capillaries open up

and suck in the water

as it lands on its body!

Cool!

The Thorny Devil can eat

thousands of ants on a hungry day.

 

 

John Edward Gray was the first

person to write about the Thorny Devil

– way back in 1841.

Pictures from here and here.