Bearded dragons have a pretty rich language. No, they don't speak like we do, but they use body language. Their language is rather interesting and
amusing to watch.
Often people ask me "why does my dragon do this...." not realizing that their dragon is actually expressing a very common gesture. With understanding
some of these gestures we can understand more about our Dragons. Get an idea for how they are feeling, what upsets them, what they are afraid of...
Perhaps (mildly) what they are thinking.
HEAD BOBBING - is a body language that signifies Dominance. Both males and females can bob their heads. They move their head up and down in a
rather quick motion - sometimes this gesture can be accompanied by a flared and/or blackened beard. This particular body language is in most cases
saying "WHO's the boss!"
Some Dragons actually do it to show frustration and displeasure. Moe is a major bobber in my house lol. He loves to be outside of his cage being held
or in a safe area to explore... WELL when I decide to put him back in his enclosure without fail within 3 seconds he starts bobbing at me. I believe he is
telling me he is annoyed that I put him back in his cage.
WAVING - This gesture is mostly done by babies, juveniles, and sometimes adult submissive females/males. You most commonly see this amongst
babies and juveniles though. They raise their arm and wave in a slow motion, sometimes even alternating between arms. This gesture is pretty much
saying "hey, I don't want any problems - lets be friends"!
NODDING - This gesture sometimes is hard to see unless you watch carefully. I have seen both male and female adults doing this gesture but it seems
to be most commonly done with adult males. Sometimes when adult males are together if one starts bobbing the other less dominant male will nod. The
nod is their acknowledgment to the more Dominant male that he concedes that he is the more Dominant one and doesn't want any problems.
BOWING - Is a submissive gesture. Most commonly done by female sub-adults and adults. Bowing is usually followed by a bobbing & beard display
session by a Dominant male. She is showing him her submission to him by deep bowing to him. You see alot of bowing especially during breeding
season. If she doesn't bow to him he sometimes becomes very annoyed by her not acknowledging Him as "king" and may chase her down and pin her
down by biting on a flap of skin just below her neck near her shoulder. At this time she usually will raise one arm up to him as he is pinning her down as
if she is saying "Uncle"!
BEARD DISPLAY - This can be performed by both males and females. It can mean several different things. It can be done during a simple morning
stretch or as a Dominant behavior. Dragons can also show off their beards if they are scared or threatened. Beneath their "beard" skin is a bone like
structure they "blow out" giving the appearance of a beard. They can also blacken their beards and this color can actually spread down into their chest
area!
FLAIR, TWISTING & FLATTENING - This gesture can be done by all age groups and both sexes. Most commonly done by Dominant males. They do
this when they feel threatened or when more than one male are near a desired female. They flair out their beard, sometimes blackening it as well...
Flattening and twisting their body to give the appearance of being larger to the predator or other male dragon(s). Often when it is another male dragon
they will reciprocate and do the exact same thing and then the two males will walk in a circle in a duel type stand off... Watch out if this happens with two
or more males... It means a fight may soon follow! It is best to separate them at this point or one or both of them could get injured!
TAIL CURL - This gesture is usually seen during feeding time :) Their tail is curled upward from the middle of the tail and sometimes from near the tail
base.
TAIL WAG - This is a new gesture for me. I'm sure others have seen it as well although I haven't come across anything written about it... I have only
witnessed this action a handful of times. Every time I have seen it happen it was a female who has done it with a Dominant male near by or pinning her
down. Her tail ONLY at the tip (top 2-3 inches) waves back and forth. Obviously it is a submissive gesture. If anyone has anymore information about
this gesture please contact me lol. I am curious!
**Update Dec 19/06: I just witnessed Olive doing this gesture when I put a pinkie in her enclosure for her. The pinkie was at the opposite end of the
enclosure. When Olive spotted it she became like a statue and began to do the tail wag gesture then she abruptly ran over and ate the pinkie. There
were no male dragons around.
RAISED TAIL - Adult Females tend to do this during breeding season showing their submission and willingness to mate.
GAPING - All dragons young and old do this gesture... It's actually more of a necessity. Bearded dragons gape to help regulate their body
temperature. If they are hot they gape to release excess heat in hopes to get a little cooler. If gaping doesn't solve their problem, they will move to
another area of the cage where the temperature is more to their liking at the moment. Gaping is when a bearded dragon opens his mouth and sits there
with it open for a while. When they do this they are usually in the basking zone.
amusing to watch.
Often people ask me "why does my dragon do this...." not realizing that their dragon is actually expressing a very common gesture. With understanding
some of these gestures we can understand more about our Dragons. Get an idea for how they are feeling, what upsets them, what they are afraid of...
Perhaps (mildly) what they are thinking.
HEAD BOBBING - is a body language that signifies Dominance. Both males and females can bob their heads. They move their head up and down in a
rather quick motion - sometimes this gesture can be accompanied by a flared and/or blackened beard. This particular body language is in most cases
saying "WHO's the boss!"
Some Dragons actually do it to show frustration and displeasure. Moe is a major bobber in my house lol. He loves to be outside of his cage being held
or in a safe area to explore... WELL when I decide to put him back in his enclosure without fail within 3 seconds he starts bobbing at me. I believe he is
telling me he is annoyed that I put him back in his cage.
WAVING - This gesture is mostly done by babies, juveniles, and sometimes adult submissive females/males. You most commonly see this amongst
babies and juveniles though. They raise their arm and wave in a slow motion, sometimes even alternating between arms. This gesture is pretty much
saying "hey, I don't want any problems - lets be friends"!
NODDING - This gesture sometimes is hard to see unless you watch carefully. I have seen both male and female adults doing this gesture but it seems
to be most commonly done with adult males. Sometimes when adult males are together if one starts bobbing the other less dominant male will nod. The
nod is their acknowledgment to the more Dominant male that he concedes that he is the more Dominant one and doesn't want any problems.
BOWING - Is a submissive gesture. Most commonly done by female sub-adults and adults. Bowing is usually followed by a bobbing & beard display
session by a Dominant male. She is showing him her submission to him by deep bowing to him. You see alot of bowing especially during breeding
season. If she doesn't bow to him he sometimes becomes very annoyed by her not acknowledging Him as "king" and may chase her down and pin her
down by biting on a flap of skin just below her neck near her shoulder. At this time she usually will raise one arm up to him as he is pinning her down as
if she is saying "Uncle"!
BEARD DISPLAY - This can be performed by both males and females. It can mean several different things. It can be done during a simple morning
stretch or as a Dominant behavior. Dragons can also show off their beards if they are scared or threatened. Beneath their "beard" skin is a bone like
structure they "blow out" giving the appearance of a beard. They can also blacken their beards and this color can actually spread down into their chest
area!
FLAIR, TWISTING & FLATTENING - This gesture can be done by all age groups and both sexes. Most commonly done by Dominant males. They do
this when they feel threatened or when more than one male are near a desired female. They flair out their beard, sometimes blackening it as well...
Flattening and twisting their body to give the appearance of being larger to the predator or other male dragon(s). Often when it is another male dragon
they will reciprocate and do the exact same thing and then the two males will walk in a circle in a duel type stand off... Watch out if this happens with two
or more males... It means a fight may soon follow! It is best to separate them at this point or one or both of them could get injured!
TAIL CURL - This gesture is usually seen during feeding time :) Their tail is curled upward from the middle of the tail and sometimes from near the tail
base.
TAIL WAG - This is a new gesture for me. I'm sure others have seen it as well although I haven't come across anything written about it... I have only
witnessed this action a handful of times. Every time I have seen it happen it was a female who has done it with a Dominant male near by or pinning her
down. Her tail ONLY at the tip (top 2-3 inches) waves back and forth. Obviously it is a submissive gesture. If anyone has anymore information about
this gesture please contact me lol. I am curious!
**Update Dec 19/06: I just witnessed Olive doing this gesture when I put a pinkie in her enclosure for her. The pinkie was at the opposite end of the
enclosure. When Olive spotted it she became like a statue and began to do the tail wag gesture then she abruptly ran over and ate the pinkie. There
were no male dragons around.
RAISED TAIL - Adult Females tend to do this during breeding season showing their submission and willingness to mate.
GAPING - All dragons young and old do this gesture... It's actually more of a necessity. Bearded dragons gape to help regulate their body
temperature. If they are hot they gape to release excess heat in hopes to get a little cooler. If gaping doesn't solve their problem, they will move to
another area of the cage where the temperature is more to their liking at the moment. Gaping is when a bearded dragon opens his mouth and sits there
with it open for a while. When they do this they are usually in the basking zone.
Written by: Robin Moniz 2006
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