Bearded dragons are one of the most popular pet lizards to keep at home. Most owners call their bearded dragons ‘beardies’ and ‘dragon pets’. Bearded dragons are truly amazing lizards to keep, as they are are docile, hardy and patient with their owners.
In this post, we will discuss where bearded dragon come from, what they eat, how long they live for, how big they get and if you can keep your bearded dragon with other reptiles and pets. And then, we will talk about different bearded dragon morphs and color variations.
What are bearded dragons and where do they live?
Bearded dragons are Australian lizards that have a beautiful beard under their throats. You have probably guessed that bearded dragons are heat tolerant and live in dry conditions in the wild.
This is because they come from naturally hot and dry places, such as deserts and forests. They mostly live in eastern Australia and are arid-dwelling and sun basking lizards that love to climb and bask.
Also, they usually climb and bask on both high and low branches and fences and walk in the grass, rocks and sand.
Bearded dragons form the genus called Pogona in the family Agamidae. While there are around 4-8 types of bearded dragons in the wild, mostly one of them is kept as a pet.
They are called inland bearded dragons, or Pogona vitticeps, and it is a usual bearded dragon that you find in pet stores and from breeders for sale. Another interesting fact is that they belong to Agama family, which also include green water dragons, sailfin and uromastyx!
How big do bearded dragons get?
Bearded dragons are not big lizards – full grown bearded dragon size can reach 17-24 inches (43-61cm) long from head to tail. Male bearded dragons get larger than females.
What do bearded dragons eat?
Bearded dragons are exciting pet lizards because they eat both animals and plants (these are called omnivores). Most owners get excited to feed them both fruits and vegetables, flowers, insects (snails are popular with beardies) and even small animals (mice and roaches).
Bearded dragons eat different foods because in the wild they often have to survive eating anything that is available to them.
Bearded dragon lifespan – how long do they live for?
Inland bearded dragons (the most popular bearded dragon pet) live longest out of all bearded dragon types.
With proper care, your bearded dragon will have a long life. Most bearded dragons live for 7-12 years. Most live no more than 10 years with good care and up to 12 years with excellent care.
With poor husbandry and diet, they live short lives, so it is important to plan about keeping your beardie for at least 10 years before buying one.
Do bearded dragons make good pets? Are they for beginners or advance reptile keepers?
Bearded dragons make amazing pets for both beginners and advanced keepers. They are good for beginners because they are personable – most new lizard keepers want to hold their pet, touch it and put in on a lap.
Bearded dragons don’t mind this, and actually enjoy being handled. They also rarely bite. What is more, bearded dragons are hardy and don’t usually get ill unless you didn’t provide them with good care.
The only thing you need to care about before buying a bearded dragon is if you are ready to take care of it – they are active lizards and mature beardies will need a rather big vivarium (40-55 gallons).
You will also need to feed them live insects. But on the other hand, this can be exciting, too.
Can you keep bearded dragons with other other bearded dragons or even different lizard species?
Keeping bearded dragons with other pets is not the most pleasing thing for your beardie, but it can be done. If you have another lizard or reptile that lives in similar conditions, you can house them together. These reptiles should be naturally from hot places and deserts, such as Australia. To house two or more reptiles together, choose a cage big enough for them to be active in.
For example, you can keep your bearded dragon with blue tongue skinks and even tortoises (such as Russian and leopard tortoises). The main rule with keeping other reptiles with bearded dragons is to match their habitat and increase the living space.
Can you keep few bearded dragons together?
As we have mentioned, bearded dragons are quite territorial and don’t like being surrounded by other lizards. They don’t get lonely, so keeping them separately is the best idea. But you can try keeping few female bearded dragons with one male – watch them as males can attack females. Be ready to separate them if the male attacks the female(s).
You can also keep hatchlings and a female together. If you are keeping hatchlings together, make sure that they are all getting food and don’t fight each other. Don’t keep two males in one cage – they will fight and cause injuries to each other.
You will also have to clean the vivarium more often if there are more lizards to prevent infestation.
Can you keep a bearded dragon if you have a cat or dog in the house?
Yes, there should be no issues. Most bearded dragons are fine with dogs and cats. And it is usually cats and dogs being interested in bearded dragons! They might approach each other for sniffing or even teasing! Some cats even become friends with bearded dragons and fine with their presence.
Supervise your pets when they are together and hold your beardie before you are completely sure that both sides are comfortable. If your dog or especially cat loves chasing small animals, introduce the bearded dragon and if it still tries to hurt the beardie, spray the cat with water and teach it to keep the distance. This way no one will be hurt.
How long can I handle my bearded dragon for?
Bearded dragons are mellow lizards and are fine with you handling them. The only thing to remember is that bearded dragons are cold-blooded lizards, which means that their body temperature will drop when they are outside their cage.
Don’t handle your lizard or keep it outside the cage for more than 45 minutes – 1 hour, depending on the room temperature. If your bearded dragon is cold, it will darken in color and seem tired. Place it in the cage so it can warm up under the heating bulbs.
Also, don’t forget to wash your hands after handling a bearded dragon and never kiss it. Bearded dragons carry Salmonella bacteria and even though the chances of contracting it are rather low, you need to take a great care.
Are bearded dragon’s spikes sharp?
Even though bearded dragons spikes might seem sharp, they are actually not and handling your bearded dragon will not hurt. The spikes have a purpose of making the bearded dragon look bigger and painful to touch – this protects them in the wild from being killed or eaten. They usually puff up the throat to make themselves look bigger and stronger.
Are bearded dragons diurnal or nocturnal?
Bearded dragons are diurnal – which means that they are active during the day and sleep at night. This is another reason why they are popular lizards – you can watch them being sociable during the day.
Are bearded dragons venomous?
No, bearded dragons are not venomous! Even though bearded dragons can bite (they do it rarely and only if they are scared or stressed). Bearded dragon bites usually hurt only slightly and often the skin doesn’t get broken.
The only bearded dragon type, Pogona barbata, has venomous glands on top and bottom jaws. But their venom only causes skin swelling, and doesn’t cause any other serious effects in humans.
Bearded dragon types
There are bearded dragons of different colors. This will depend on species and morphs. There are structural and color morphs that will amaze you with their colors, sizes and shapes.
Inland bearded dragon
The most popular inland bearded dragon has a mixture of gray, red and cream colors. They also usually have brownish spots and lines on their backs.
The western bearded dragon, or Pogona minima
The western bearded dragons are also kept as bearded dragon pets. They are considered dwarf bearded dragons. Their distinctive feature is that they are smaller than inland bearded dragons – only 13-14 inches long. They inhabit Southwest Australia and live in deserts, dunes and even woodlands. Western bearded dragons also often have larger heads.
The coastal (eastern) bearded dragon, or Pogona barbata
Coastal, or eastern bearded dragons are absolutely stunning and cute. They are often larger than classic inland bearded dragons (around 20-22 inches long) or just the same. Eastern bearded dragons are darker than other types – usually dark grey, charcoal or even black color.
They have a lot of spikes on their back and their mouth has a yellow lining. Their mouth is often open. They are less often kept as dragon pets as are more difficult to find and breed. Their males also have large beards.
Eastern bearded dragons inhabit more humid and cooler areas of eastern Australia, so keeping them in drier states and countries might be unsuitable. You can consider keeping them if you can arrange a more humid and cooler enclosure. Their diet is the same and that of classic dragon’s.
Lawson’s bearded dragon, Rankin’s bearded dragon or Pogota henrylawsoni
These bearded dragons come from Queensland area in Australia and are called differently. Lawson’s bearded dragons often reach only 10-14 inches. Their distinctive feature is a very small beard – which is rather flat and unnoticeable.
Other than that, they look a lot like classic bearded dragons but are more sensitive to humidity and temperature setups.
They are bit less hardy than classic beardies but in general, are very much similar to them. The big advantage with them is that they need smaller vivaria due to their sizes. Rankin’s bearded dragons are also fine living in groups of one male + few females.
Small-scaled bearded dragon, or Pogona microlepidota
Small-scaled bearded dragons are big, reaching 17-18 inches in length when fully grown. They inhabit Western Australia and lack spines on the throat and back of the head.
Nullarbor bearded dragon, or Pogona nullarbor
Nullarbor bearded dragons reach about 13-14 inches as adults and lack some spines on the back of their heads. Coloration is classic.
Dwarf bearded dragon, or Pogona minor
You have probably understood from the name that these bearded dragons are dwarfs. Their size often reaches no more than 10-12 inches. They inhabit Western Australia and prefer dry climate.
Mitchell’s dragon, or Pogona mitchelli
Mitchell’s bearded dragons live in dry areas of Western Australia and Northern Territory. They reach about 13-14 inches in length when mature. Their distinctive feature is a bit orangy coloration and big spikes on the back of their heads.
Bearded dragons morphs and colors
You can find bearded dragons of different colors on the market nowadays. These various colors are a result of crossing different types of bearded dragons. Various color genes (recessive and dominant), cause the specific coloration in bearded dragons.
Many breeders specifically breed differently colored bearded dragons in order to get offspring with new type of coloration. These morphs are more expensive than classic types (200$-1,000$ and up).
Very often, male bearded dragons are brighter than females but have less patterns than females. Many females have darker beards with white scales.
It can also be genetic mutations, which cause new and interesting colors and looks (for example lack of any color pigment – albino).
Let’s look at different bearded dragon morphs and their colors.
Please note that these are only examples and there are many more crosses between each of those types of bearded dragons. Breeders cross various types of bearded dragons all the time to produce dragons of beautiful colors. For example, German Giant bearded dragons have been crossed with citrus type to produce larger beardies or yellow color.
| Types of bearded dragon morphs and colors | Description of bearded dragon morphs and their colors | Pictures of bearded dragons |
Normal bearded dragon | Normal bearded dragons have a simple coloring – brown with some grey and tan. ‘Classic’ bearded dragons have been used for crossing and many new colored bearded dragons have been created. Brighter bearded dragons are more popular and the interest for new colorings is only growing. This is why classic bearded dragons have been initially crossed with red dragons which created various types of differently colored bearded dragons. Because there are so many new color and structural morphs, less and less people go for a classic dragon. | |
Tiger bearded dragon | Tiger bearded dragons have beautiful red and yellow coloring, mixed with brown. Distinctive feature – tiger-like stripe patterns on the back. This bearded dragon on the picture is a citrus tiger type. |  |
Leatherback bearded dragon | Leatherback beardies have a lot of scales all over their body. A bearded dragon on the picture is a red and yellow leatherback. Leatherback beardies are a result one dominant gene, from one parent. Partial dominance causes lack of some spikes. When both dominant genes are present, a silkback beardie is born. |  |
Silkback bearded dragon | Silkback bearded dragons have a smooth skin and don’t have any scales on their body. They also don’t have scales on their beard. Silkbacks are very similar to ‘Smoothies’ – a different type of bearded dragons. Silkback beardies are a result of two dominant genes from both parents. |  |
Citrus bearded dragon | Citrus bearded dragons are very bright and yellow in color. |  |
Patternless bearded dragon | Patternless beaded dragons lack normal markings on their bodies. They are also often white in color. These beardies are often called Zero bearded dragons. Witblits beardies are also patternless – white to tan and orange colors are available. |  |
Yellow, Sunburst, Blood, Tangerine bearded dragon (pictures in order, form top to bottom). | All these types of bearded dragons have been created by crossing with other strains, resulting in bright colors. Red is similar to blood red – the latter is brighter. Flame and Sunset (bright red) bearded dragons are also similar to red ones. |     |
Leucistic bearded dragon | Leucistic bearded dragons are grey to white but have dark eyes. ‘Snow’ dragons are fully white. Don’t confuse leucistic dragons with albinos – they are white vs. albinos have no color at all. Their nails are also white from birth – this is their distinctive feature. |  |
German Giant bearded dragon | German Giant beaded dragons are very attractive and popular. They have gold irises and colored in tans and orangy-brown colors. Their bellies look round and large and they reach 22-24 inches long! German Giants are often more alert and angry, but not too much. |  |
Hypo, or hypomelanistic bearded dragons | These bearded dragons are much brighter in color – orange and white. ‘Hypo’ means reduced black pigment. Their claws have no color. Coloring is a result of recessive genes (both parents should carry the gene). Hypos generally have less black pigment, which results in brighter colors. Only black pigment is affected, so areas that should be dark are often pale or white (such as claws). There are variations of hypo beardies, ranging from pale ones (Pastel) to completely white ones (called Snows). Leucistic beardies are also hypos, as they lack the skin pigment – these beardies are usually pale. |  |
Striped bearded dragon | Striped bearded dragons have noticeable stripes on their backs. |  |
Red or Red and Gold bearded dragon | Red or red and gold bearded dragons have strong red and gold coloration on their bodies. They also have brown/tan stripes on the back. There is a big variety or red and gold dragon variations – morphs resulted from crossing German giants, red dragons and normal bearded dragons together. Red bearded dragons (with gold color or without) develop their coloring with age. |  |
Albino bearded dragons | These bearded dragons don’t have any patterns on their skin. This pigmentation is caused by genetic abnormality – recessive genes. Some albino beardies have yellow markings, as the mutation doesn’t affect them. |  |
Translucent bearded dragon | Translucent bearded dragons lack or don’t have any white pigment under their scales,which makes the other pigments show more colorfully. This gives them a slightly grayish and ‘transparent’ look. Translucent hatchlings are brighter, and with age, this effect lessens. |  |
Pastel beaded dragon | Pastel bearded dragons are also hypomelanistic and colored in pastel colors – such as pink body and red-orangy head. |  |
Thank you for reading! Read our other articles on keeping your bearded dragons to learn more about excellent care for your beardie!