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Bearded Dragon Species

There are eight species of Bearded Dragons (genus Pogona) in Australia. Here is a brief overview of differences and where each species would be found.

Inland Bearded Dragon - Pogona Vitticeps

Growing to approximately 25" with females being smaller than males. The Central, or Inland Bearded Dragon lives in central areas of Australia, down to the south central coast near Adelaide. They can live in a wide variety of habitats, including desert, dry forests, and scrubland. The Pogona Vitticeps will eat insects, flowers, soft leaves and shoots. This is the most common of the pogona species in the pet trade. Many different size and colour phases are available from specialist breeders.

Rankin Dragon - Pogona henrylawsoni/Pogona Brevis

A smaller dragon minus the beard of the p.vitticeps but the Rankin still has a great personality. The Rankin Dragon will grow to a maximum of 12". The Rankin lives in north-eastern Australia in the province of Queensland, and is sometimes reported in the adjacent Northern Territories. This is one of the smaller species, and also has a quite small 'beard'. The Rankin is less common in the pet trade.

Eastern or Common Bearded Dragon - Pogona Barbata

Pogona Barbata largest of the pogona species along with the vitticeps. This species of Bearded Dragon lives along the eastern and southern coasts of Australia. It is darker than the familiar p.vitticeps and has larger spikes. They live in a variety of habitats, including seasonally wet forests and dry scrublands. They eat a wide variety of foods, including insects, fruit, greens, flowers and even smaller lizards.

Small-scaled / Drydale River Bearded Dragon - Pogona Microlepidota

Pogona Microlepidota slightly smaller lizard, found only in the Kimberly area of the far North West. Its habitat is open woodland where there are grasses and low-lying shrubs for hiding places). Simiar to, but smaller than, p.barbata, the small-scaled dragon has fewer spikes on its throat and back than most other Bearded Dragons.

Western Bearded Dragon - Pogona Minima

Found on the sandy soils of the South West. this species lives in a variety of habitats including woodlands, heath, arid desert, and even coastal dunes. It is regarded as semi-aboreal, and is often observed basking on rocks or fallen trees. Unfortunately, this species also likes to bask on roadways, a dangerous practice.Pogona Minima is similar to p.mitchelli but can be differentiated by its lack of mitchelli's robust conical head spikes.

Dwarf Bearded Dragon - Pogona Minor

Pogona Minor lives in western and central Australia. It is one of the smaller pogona species. Found in a wide variety of habitats, including forest and desert, the Dwarf Bearded Dragon can be distinguished from the otherwise similar Western bearded dragon by its shorter limbs and tail. This species is available in the pet trade.

Pogona Mitchelli

Lives in north-western Australia, in a variety of habitats, including the Great Sandy Desert. There is some controversy about whether Pogona Mitchelli is actually a species distinct from p.minor. This is a very small species, averaging only 5.5" or 14cm snout-vent.

Pogona Nullabor

Medium-sized species of Bearded Dragon lives in a small area in south-central Australia. On the coast, it is known to live on steep cliffs and in caves. The Pogona Nullabor has distinctive white bands on its back and 3-7 rows of spines along the sides of its body. This species is not found in the pet trade.