User:Dan scott/sandbox/Bearded Dragon behavior

Behavior
Adult bearded dragons are very territorial. As they grow, they establish territories in which displays of aggression and appeasement form a normal part of their social interactions. A dominant male will adopt a dominant stance and sometimes ready himself for a fight to attack a male aggressor to defend territory, food sources, or in competition for a female. Any male approaching without displaying submissive behavior will be seen as a challenge for territory. Aggressive males have even been known to attack females who do not display submissive gestures in return.

Correspondingly, adult male bearded dragons can bite more forcefully than adult females and this difference is associated with greater head dimensions.

The bearded dragon comes in many different colors. The beard itself is used for mating and aggression displays, as well as heat management. It forms part of a range of gestures and signals through which the dragons have basic levels of communication. Both sexes have a beard, but males display more frequently, especially in courtship rituals. Females also display their beard as a sign of aggression. The beard darkens, sometimes turning jet black, and inflates during the display. The bearded dragon may also open its mouth and gape in addition to inflating its beard to appear more intimidating. Extreme behavior such as hissing can be observed when threatened with a predator, inflating the body and tilting towards the threat in defense. Bearded dragons have relatively strong jaws but will often only attack as a last resort when threatened outside of competition with their own species.

Head bobbing is another behavior seen in both females and males; they quickly move their heads up and down, often darkening and flaring their beard. Changes in the pace of head bobbing are thought to be a form of communication. Males head bob to impress females, and a male will often have to demonstrate his dominance when attempting to mate before the female will concede. Smaller males will often respond to larger male's heads bobbing by arm-waving, which is a submissive sign. Females will also arm wave to avoid aggression, often in response to a male's head bobbing. Female bearded dragons have been seen lowering themselves towards the ground and intermittently arm-waving whilst moving away from a dominant male in an attempt to either appease or escape.

The bearded dragon has also been shown to perceive illusion, specifically the Delboeuf illusion. In an experiment at the University of Padova, bearded dragons were presented with two different-sized plates with the same amount of food. The bearded dragons chose the smaller plate more often than they chose the larger one, showing that they were able to perceive the illusion and interpret that a larger plate does not always mean more food. This is the first evidence of this behavior being shown in a reptile species.