CENTRAL NETTED DRAGON

(Ctenophorus nuchalis)

The Central Netted Dragon

(Ctenophorus nuchalis)

The Central Netted Dragon is a small, alert desert lizard that looks as though it has been drawn directly from the red heart of Australia. It lives where the land is dry, the days are hot, and the sky seems enormous and empty – yet it thrives in these tough conditions.

Where It Lives

The Central Netted Dragon is found across the arid and semi-arid interior of Australia, especially:

  • Central and western Queensland
  • Much of the Northern Territory
  • Northern South Australia
  • Parts of Western Australia

It favours:

  • Red sandy deserts and sandplains
  • Spinifex grasslands (those spiky, hummock-forming grasses)
  • Open shrublands with loose, sandy soil

Imagine a landscape of red sand, scattered low shrubs and clumps of spinifex. The sun is strong, heat shimmers above the ground, and from a distance the land looks almost empty. This is exactly where the Central Netted Dragon feels at home.

What It Looks Like

The name “netted” comes from the delicate patterning on its body, like a fine mesh drawn across the skin.

Size

  • Total length: around 18–25 cm (including tail)
  • Body (snout to vent): about 7–9 cm
  • Light, agile build

Colour and Pattern

Their colours blend almost perfectly with desert sand:

  • Shades of reddish-brown, sandy-brown, grey or tan
  • Fine dark lines and pale edges forming a net-like pattern
  • Often a pale stripe or broken markings along the back
  • Belly usually lighter, often off-white or pale cream

Some individuals show rusty orange or yellowish tones, especially when warm and active. Their eyes are keen and bright, scanning constantly for movement.

Shape and Features

  • Pointed head with a short snout
  • Long, slender tail, often more than half the total length
  • Slightly spiny or rough scales, particularly around the neck and back
  • Strong limbs built for quick bursts of speed

The overall impression is of a small, well-camouflaged sprinter that can vanish into the landscape as soon as it chooses.

Daily Life and Behaviour

A Day in the Life

Central Netted Dragons are diurnal – active during the day.

Early in the morning, when the desert is still cool, they often:

  1. Climb onto small shrubs, branches, or grass clumps
  2. Bask in the first sun, flattening their bodies to soak up warmth
  3. Begin to patrol for insects and other small prey

As the day heats up, you might see them:

  • Darting suddenly to chase an insect
  • Freezing motionless when threatened
  • Diving into low shrubs, spinifex clumps, or burrow entrances

When the heat becomes extreme, they may retreat to:

  • Burrows (their own or those of other animals)
  • Deep shade under vegetation
  • Cracks in the soil

Territorial Displays

Like many Australian dragons, Central Netted Dragons use body language:

  • Head-bobbing and posture changes to signal dominance or courtship
  • Body flattening to look larger
  • Quick movements and chasing to defend small territories

They are not noisy animals; instead, they “speak” with movement and posture.

What They Eat

Central Netted Dragons are mainly insectivores.

Typical foods include:

  • Ants
  • Beetles
  • Grasshoppers and locusts
  • Spiders and other small arthropods
  • Occasionally small plant material (such as flowers or soft shoots), especially when insects are scarce

They rely heavily on their sharp eyesight:

  1. Spot movement
  2. Rush forward in a short sprint
  3. Seize prey with a quick snap of the jaws

In the vast open spaces they inhabit, a scattered insect can mean the difference between energy gained and energy lost, so efficiency is essential.

Breeding and Life Cycle

Mating

Breeding usually occurs in the warmer months, often spring to early summer, when:

  • Temperatures are suitable for incubation
  • Insects are more abundant

Males may:

  • Defend territories
  • Display with head-bobs and body postures
  • Approach receptive females with cautious, deliberate movements

Eggs and Hatchlings

  • Females lay clutches of eggs (commonly around 4–8, though numbers can vary)
  • Eggs are buried in warm, sandy soil where the sun heats the nest
  • After several weeks of incubation (timing depends on temperature), tiny dragons hatch and dig their way to the surface

Hatchlings are:

  • Miniature versions of adults
  • Fully independent from birth
  • Vulnerable to many predators, including birds, larger lizards, and snakes

Only a small number will survive to adulthood, but in good seasons many young dragons can be seen scurrying across the sand.

Adaptations to Desert Life

The Central Netted Dragon is well equipped for a harsh environment.

Heat Management

  • Behavioural thermoregulation: moving between sun and shade to control body temperature
  • Basking in the morning, hiding in the hottest part of the day
  • Light colours that reflect some solar radiation and blend with sand

Camouflage

Their sandy, netted pattern:

  • Breaks up the outline of the body
  • Helps them disappear into the background of red and pale sand, gravel, and spinifex shadows
  • Reduces detection by predators such as birds of prey

Speed and Agility

  • Strong hind limbs for fast sprinting
  • Quick directional changes to dodge predators and capture prey
  • Ability to freeze suddenly, becoming almost invisible against the ground

These abilities make them well suited to life in open, exposed habitats.

Ecological Role

The Central Netted Dragon is both predator and prey.

As a Predator

  • Helps control populations of insects and other invertebrates
  • Plays a role in balancing desert food webs

As Prey

They are an important food source for:

  • Raptors (such as kestrels and other birds of prey)
  • Larger lizards
  • Snakes
  • Some small mammals

In this way, they help move energy through the ecosystem, linking the insect world to larger carnivores.

Conservation Status

At present, the Central Netted Dragon is not considered threatened across most of its range. It is relatively widespread in suitable habitat.

However, like many desert species, it can be affected by:

  • Habitat disturbance (clearing of vegetation, heavy grazing pressure)
  • Introduced predators (cats and foxes)
  • Climate change, which can alter temperature patterns and rainfall, affecting vegetation and insect availability

Because they depend on intact arid habitats, protecting large areas of relatively undisturbed desert and spinifex grassland helps ensure their long-term survival.

Central Netted Dragons and People

You are unlikely to see a Central Netted Dragon in busy coastal cities; they live far inland, often in remote, sparsely populated areas.

Visitors to central and western inland Australia may spot them:

  • Basking beside sandy tracks
  • Perched low in bushes near campsites
  • Darting away as you walk through open country.

A Short Desert Scene

Imagine walking across a red sandplain just after sunrise. The air is cool, but you can feel warmth building on your skin. The spinifex clumps cast long, sharp shadows, and the only sounds are distant birds and the crunch of sand underfoot.

You pause, and at first you see nothing. Then, in the corner of your eye, a tiny shape shifts on a low shrub. A Central Netted Dragon, still dark from the night’s chill, flattens its body to the morning sun. Each scale catches the light; its netted pattern echoes the shadow patterns of the grass.

A fly passes close. The dragon explodes into motion — a short, precise dash, a snap of the jaws — then stillness again. Within seconds, it is almost invisible against the sand, a small, watchful presence in a vast landscape.

This quiet little reptile is one of the many small lives that make the desert not empty, but richly alive.

Photo Gallery

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