Lizards in the Garden

Seen yesterday and had to get a photograph- a tata lizard laying eggs.

I missed a photo of the actual egg laying as I raced to get the camera, but did actually see that as well.

Anyway............ two eggs to display.

This time of year the ta ta lizard - called because it holds up a hand as if waving good bye, is common around suburban yards in Darwin and much of the Top End.

Yes, it is not unusual to see eggs that have been deposited in shallow hole in the ground.......but rare to catch them in the act!

Enjoy!

Ta ta lizard laying eggs

 More details here -http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lophognathus 

Dealing with the Wildlife

When you live in the outer reaches of urban living, you need to learn how to deal with the wildlife.

In our region, crocodiles immediately come to mind - you cannot miss them - they appear on the front page of the local newspaper almost every day. Along with snakes, ants - large and small, especially green ants, bandicoots, cockroaches, cane toads and ...........lizards.

The last ones come in large through to small. Our immediate neighbourhood has a quite large monitor lizard - similar to a goanna, about a metre long, and an absolute plethora of much smaller lizards. Skinks of various types and lots of ta -ta lizards. Even the resident dog hardly ever bothers to chase these critters.........there are just too many in the yard, "her" yard!

But last night we had a new incursion, with a 300mm long ta-ta lizard sleeping - yes, sleeping, on the small clothes line on the outside covered terrace area. They cling on tightly to small tree and shrub branches to sleep overnight where they blend in with the colour of the branch very well. But I had not seen one using the clothes line, grasping the line tightly and using it for a bed!



And yes, it had moved on by this morning.