Bearded Dragons! In Cornwall!

[grokefish]

Anyone know if these little critters are surviving in the wild in Cornwall?

I found one basking in the sun in a clearing, I took it back to where I am staying and got a heat light and such like, anyone know how long he should be under the light for/day?

I rekon he is an escapee but he appears to have been living wild for a while now and had a few injuries that had healed up, maybe from a cat/bird/fox/badger etc.

[Miss Dib Dabs]

Goodness! I have a beardie. Lovely beasties, need quite a lot of room. I have the light on 10-12 hours a day, the thermostat controlled heater is on all the time as it adjusts itself to keep an ambient temp in the vivarium.
P.

[Mike_Noren]

During the summer, sure. It's not going to survive outdoors when winter comes.

[Jools]

Amazing the stange bearded creatures you find in Cornwall.

Jools

[Miss Dib Dabs]

Amazing the stange bearded creatures you find in Cornwall.

Jools

My Dad is one of 'em.
P.

[grokefish]

Well looks like he's coming back to Wales with us, can't find any owner.

[Richard B]

There are 3 native lizard species in the UK

The common or viviporous lizard (Lacerta vivipara / Zootoca vivipara ), the sand lizard (Lacerta agilis) & the slow worm (Anguis fragilis ) a legless lizard often mistaken for a snake. That said i have seen at least 2 other lizard species in the wild in the UK which are established (or have been at one time or another) so it wouldn't surprise me if various other "exotics" got a foothold - certainly there are parakeets, wallabies & scorpions living in the UK.

[grokefish]

This is what I was thinking Richard, he does look like he has either been a bit abused some time ago or kept with other dragons and bullied a bit or he has been roughing it for some time.

[Mike_Noren]

That said i have seen at least 2 other lizard species in the wild in the UK

Yes, but green lizard and wall lizard are both subtropical species from mainland europe, bearded dragon is a tropical species from the central australian desert. I can't say categorically it's impossible it can survive winter in cornwall, but I do consider it unlikely.

[grokefish]

I wouldn't have thought it would survive the winter but I think it has survived free for this long period of hot weather we have had.
You never know though, reptiles are amazing creatures, very adaptive and clever.

Pic of dragon discovery:



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And in the house:



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[Richard B]

That said i have seen at least 2 other lizard species in the wild in the UK

Yes, but green lizard and wall lizard are both subtropical species from mainland europe, bearded dragon is a tropical species from the central australian desert. I can't say categorically it's impossible it can survive winter in cornwall, but I do consider it unlikely.

Green lizard is one i've seen & although i cannot identify the other it was not a wall lizard but it may well be a subtropical species - i also believe it is most highly unlikely a beardy would survive our winters but it may be possible (?)

I suppose we really need a UK herptologist to chip in... or museum reptile expert type-of-person. To quote Jurassic Park's Ian Malcolm "Nature will find a way". I understand from an angler friend there have been 2 independant sightings of the Burbot in the UK recently which was classified as extinct ( a freshwater cod).

[Miss Dib Dabs]

He's a fine looking beardie. Looks in reasonable shape and not thin in the pics. Is it ok being handled etc? I wonder if someone just dumped him when they could no longer afford him. How big is he/she? Doesn't look very old?
P.

[grokefish]

He is pretty big, the biggest I have ever seen anyway.

An interesting note here.

He will not eat any of the normal foods that people feed their dragons according to the books/internet.

Chuck a handfull of dandylion leaves and a load of woodlice and he literally shoots across the tank to get them.
He is in a 5'x19"x2' which was going to be my new Xingu tank

In fact here is a picture:



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This makes me think he has been out in the wild for a long time, maybe over the last winter?

[littlebristlenose]

The deserts at night hear get to below zero so ther would be a chance of them coloniseing the land that said they need alot of food in the warm months to pull thought so not likely thought the 8 months there when its cold.
Live food like small mice, crickets, grasshoppers, mealworms etc is a good diet chopped up greens like your fish.
They are a real active lizard/dragon so you should many years injoyment from him.