GRAAFF-REINET NEWS - What is it about reptiles that so many people don’t like? I guess most people immediately think of snakes, but can I remind you that all the following groups of animals are also reptiles – tortoises, turtles, terrapins, lizards and crocodiles.
While the biggest group is probably the snakes, the lizards must come a close second.
There are many different kinds of lizards. My field guide, by Bill Branch (Field guide to snakes and other reptiles of southern Africa. Struik 1998), focusses mainly on snakes, but also covers lizards under the following headings – skinks, lacertids, plated lizards, girdled lizards, monitors, agamas, chameleons and geckos. If you haven’t heard of some of these I guess you should get a field guide and extend your knowledge!
My field guide, by Bill Branch
It seems we have been almost over-run by so-called Blue-headed Lizards in recent times and so I want to dedicate this column to telling you something about these colourful reptiles.
Blue-headed lizards, or Southern Tree Agamas as they are probably more properly called, go by the scientific name of Acanthocercus atricollis.
Most agamas (there are about ten species in southern Africa) belong to the genus Agama, which obviously gives rise to their common name. However, those who study reptiles (herpetologists) believe our local tree agama to be distinctive enough to warrant placement in its own genus.
We have quite a number of these large, shuffling monsters living in our garden.
They can be rather intimidating as they scramble up a tree or the outside brickwork of our home, and can cause some consternation when they emerge suddenly from behind a downpipe and scurry out of reach. They are, incidentally, completely harmless to humans, although I’m sure they could inflict a bite if you were tempted to catch one.
These creatures, like all lizards, are carnivorous predators and can be quite bold when in pursuit of prey.
Tree agamas are most active during the day (diurnal) and we often see them basking in the sun on our roof and the rooves of our neighbours. Although I have never known one to enter a house, they may on rare occasions come indoors.
I sometimes hear scuffling sounds above my ceilings at night and would not be surprised to learn that they are happily living on the roofs of houses where they could perhaps be a nuisance.
