Thorny devil
Moloch horridus · A spiky, ant-eating lizard of the deserts and scrublands of central and western Australia.
Also called Thorny dragon, Mountain devil, Thorny lizard, Moloch.
Taxonomy
| Kingdom | Animalia |
|---|---|
| Phylum | Chordata |
| Class | Reptilia |
| Order | Squamata |
| Family | Agamidae |
| Genus | Moloch |
| Species | Moloch horridus |
Where it lives
Sandy deserts and spinifex scrub of central and western Australia.
Fun facts
- When threatened, a thorny devil lowers its real head between its front legs and shows a spiny false head on the back of its neck to predators.
- A thorny devil can drink by touching water with almost any part of its body, because tiny channels in its skin carry the water to its mouth.
- Thorny devils often eat thousands of ants in a single day.
- A thorny devil's main source of water is damp sand, which it absorbs through its skin.
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Facts and taxonomy adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).