Adelaide Zoo

As a conservation charity, every visit, adoption, donation and ticket helps save species from extinction

Pygmy Blue-tongue Lizard

Animal Facts

  • Genus:

    Tiliqua

  • Species:

    Tiliqua adelaidensis

  • Conservation
    Status:

    Endangered

  • Found In:

    South Australia

  • Length:

    15cm

Meet one of South Australia’s rarest lizards!

Adelaide Zoo is home to two endangered male Pygmy Blue-tongue Lizards, both of which have been cared for at the Zoo since March 2014.

Zoos SA has played an important role in the conservation of this species since its rediscovery in 1992, supporting research and breeding efforts to help secure its future. In 2016, Monarto Safari Park successfully bred 14 Pygmy Blue-tongue Lizards in captivity, marking an important world first for the species.

Visitors can see one of the male Pygmy Blue-tongue Lizards on habitat in the Adelaide Zoo’s Reptile House. Drop in and take a look for yourself.

The Pygmy Blue-tongue Lizard is an amazing little species of skink that’s endemic to South Australia, meaning we’re the only place where they can be found in the wild.

It is the smallest species in the blue-tongue group, growing to about 15 cm and even having a pink tongue! Once believed to be extinct due to the loss of native grasslands, it was rediscovered in 1992 near Burra and has since been found at several other locations.

These lizards rely on very specific habitat conditions, surviving in remnant grasslands where they use abandoned trapdoor spider burrows for shelter rather than digging their own. Because only a tiny fraction of their original habitat remains, the species is highly vulnerable.

However, ongoing conservation efforts, including the Zoos SA captive breeding program, are helping to stabilise the population and support the species’ recovery.

Love the Pygmy Blue-tongue? Join us in ensuring these tiny, endangered lizards stay ahead of extinction! 

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