Often mistaken for snakes because of their serpentine appearance, the common scaly foot is a type of legless lizard found mostly in eastern and southern parts of Australia. These incredible reptiles are also known to populate semiarid and tropical-wet areas in Queensland, however, so Sunshine Coast residents may encounter one or two!
Common scaly foot are one of the country’s largest legless lizard species and share a closer relation to geckos than they do snakes.
Often mistaken for snakes because of their serpentine appearance, the common scaly foot is a type of legless lizard found mostly in eastern and southern parts of Australia. These incredible reptiles are also known to populate semiarid and tropical-wet areas in Queensland, however, so Sunshine Coast residents may encounter one or two!
These lizards are usually grey or a light brown colour, though they have also been found in variations of a coppery-red with a grey tail. Their scales may also have dark little spots. Unlike snakes, they have visible ear holes and a thick, pink fleshy tongue.
Common scaly foot are one of the country’s largest legless lizard species and share a closer relation to geckos than they do snakes.
The common scaly foot can be found along the southern and eastern coastal regions of Australia, as they prefer habits that provide long grasses, woodlands, and semiarid to tropical-wet areas.
These legless lizards are crepuscular, meaning that they are mostly active around dawn or dusk. They have been known to become active at night (nocturnal) after a very hot day.
Although serpentine in appearance and often mistaken for a snake, the common scaly foot is neither venomous nor overtly dangerous to humans or animals. When they feel threatened, common scaly foot will flash their tongues in a mimicry of snake behaviour.
Apart from this, they are not aggressive and will more than likely attempt to flee from would-be predators.
In the wild, common scaly foot’s diet consists primarily of invertebrates like burrowing spiders. In captivity – as these legless lizards are popular to have as pets, though a permit is required to keep one! – they have been known to eat other lizards, fruits, and vegetables, with a particular favourite being bananas.
If you encounter a common scaly foot out in the wild or in your garden, they shouldn’t raise any concerns for you or pets as they are not venomous and are unlikely to become aggressive in a situation with a human or animal. For this reason, they can make easy prey to cats and dogs! Children should always be kept away from unknown reptiles and treat any unrecognisable snake or lizard as potentially venomous, however.
You can contact the team at Snake Rescue Sunny Coast to safely identify, capture, and relocate snakes and lizards from your home or garden.
A common scaly foot is a species of lizard found across Australia – they are endemic to the country. Despite their appearance, common scaly foot are actually lizards and share a closer relationship with geckos than they do snakes.
The common scaly foot lizard is very much serpentine in appearance, like another legless lizard species found in Australia, the Burton’s legless lizard. If you encounter what you think may be a common scaly foot, look for the following characteristics:
At first glance, the common scaly foot looks very much like a snake, and if you are unfamiliar with this species, it’s easy to mistake this lizard for a snake – but there are some clear physical features that can help you distinguish this species from a snake, such as:
These legless lizards are not dangerous to humans, nor is it venomous. They are not aggressive and will usually flee when threatened. Defensive behaviour will usually see these lizards flickering and flashing their tongue, like a snake would.
It is very unlikely that these legless lizards will bite when provoked, though you should never purposely antagonise one. A common scaly foot lizard may flash its tongue at you, like a snake might, but they will usually flee when threatened or facing would-be predators.
If you encounter one of these incredible creatures, it’s best to leave them alone. If an injured or unwanted common scaly foot should enter your home or yard, just give our friendly team a call to catch and relocate it.
While the common scaly foot is considered to be a legless lizard, they actually do have limbs. However, these tiny hind legs remain tightly pressed to the lizard’s body and do not function like a normal limb would.
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