The Blue Tongue Lizard
This a juvenile Blue Tongue Lizard. Like all youngsters, he's very cute at this age. They're harmless, and friendly and are often kept as pets. Blue Tongues occur across most of Australia. They like open country with lots of cover like tall grasses, leaf litter, rocks and logs, low shrubs etc. under which they will shelter at night. (They also like burrows). During the day they sun themselves until they are warm enough, and then they forage for food during the warmer parts of the day. Their diet consists of plant matter and small animals. That can be beetles, caterpillars, crickets, snails and even other small lizards. Anything they can get hold of will do. But they are not very fast, so they usually eat slower critters. They are very partial to slugs and snails. Oh, and they steal dog food... Blue-tongue lizards have strong jaw muscles to crush big beetles and snail shells. They may also bite in defence when they feel threatened.