Appearance

The western hooded scaly foot, like most legless lizards, is closer in appearance to a snake than other lizards.

Major differences which differentiate them are the presence of an external ear opening and the presence of a scaly flap where hind limbs would have existed previously. Legless lizards can lose and then regenerate their tail. In contrast to the forked tongue of the snakes, western hooded scaly foots have a broad, fleshy tongue which is a dark blue in colour.

They have an average length of 40cm as adults. Their tail length accounts for two thirds of their total body length.

Their body is patterned with reddish brown or yellowish brown in colour with mottling forming an oblique or reticulated pattern.

Their name comes from the black or dark brown hood which sits just behind the head. A small black blotch is also present below the eye. On their underside they are white.

Lifespan

Pygopods, the group of lizards which includes the western hooded scaly foot live for up to 12 years.

Lifespans for individual species have not been well enough studied to be stated definitively.

Diet

Western hooded scaly foots feed upon a range of invertebrates.

Habitat

They are found across the west of Australia taking in the states of Queensland, Western Australia, South Australia and the NorthernTerritory.

Here they live in dry grassland, woodland and shrubland.

Reproduction

Hooded scaly foots lay a pair of eggs at a time. Incubation takes 73-74 days when occurring at 30oC though different temperatures can change the incubation length.

Behaviour

When hunting the western hooded scaly foot will roll to disorientate their prey.

The western hooded scaly foot has a range of natural predators including raptors, snakes and goannas. They also fall prey to introduced predators such as foxes and cats.

Threats

The International Union for the conservation of nature does not identify any threats to the western hooded scaly-foot.

How you can help

The largest threat to legless lizards across Australia is being killed by people who believe they are snakes. There is no need to kill snakes in your yard and attempting to do so significantly increases the threat of being bitten.

If you see something which appears to be a snake in your yard observe from a safe distance and call a licensed professional to remove it.

Quick Facts

The western hooded scaly foot is also known as the hooded scaly foot or the black headed scaly foot.

Their scientific names translate as ‘rump foot’ for pygopus and black headed for nigriceps.

References

Cowan, M., How, R. & Ellis, R. 2017. Pygopus nigriceps.The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2017: e.T102831509A102831677.http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-3.RLTS.T102831509A102831677.en.Downloaded on 07 March 2019.

Arod.com.au. (2019). Western hooded scaly-foot (Pygopusnigriceps) at the Australian Reptile Online Database | AROD.com.au. [online]Available at:http://www.arod.com.au/arod/reptilia/Squamata/Pygopodidae/Pygopus/nigriceps[Accessed 7 Mar. 2019].

Swanson, S. (2014). Field Guide to Australian Reptiles. NewSouth Wales. Pascal Press.Brown, D. (2012).

A guide to… Australian geckoes &pygopods in captivity. Queensland. Reptile Publications.