Australian Bearded Dragons (a/k/a beardies) are fascinating pets. They can live up to ten to twelve (10-12) years. They are very social creatures and love to be handled. They rarely nip at people but even if they did, they have very tiny, flexible, plastic-like teeth that don't hurt. Beardies eat lots of small crickets but later on will eat mostly fruits and vegetables and crickets are only an occasional treat.

Eggs in the Incubator

A special incubator was ordered to house the bearded dragon eggs. Eggs may have to incubate anywhere from approximately sixty to ninety (60-90 days.) This first clutch of eggs took approximately ninety (90) days. Once hatched, the beardie stays in the incubator a few days getting to run around as much as he likes.

Here is another fascinating fact about "beardies." Once a female has been mated with a male, she can lay a clutch of eggs every month for up to one year without another mating. Spot has laid two clutches so far and we are hopeful this will be it!

Leathery Reptile Eggs

Here is a picture of Spot as she was laying the eggs. You will note that her coloring looks quite different than the picture of her before she laid them. Some of this is due to the lighting when the picture was taken but "beardies" do change shades from time to time due to the type of "substrate" they are in and/or whether they are shedding or not.

Our Classroom Pet

Spike is a two year old australian bearded dragon. We have had him since he was six weeks old and fit in the palm of my hand. In spring of last year, Spike mated with a female "beardie" belonging to Ms. Renee Lackey, our Primary GT teacher. In June, Ms. Lackey's dragon, "Spot" laid nineteen eggs, fifteen of which survived. Look closely and see if you can see some of the eggs in Spot's stomach.

For the next few days, I will be adding pictures and video so you can see what's been going on at Ms. Lackey's house this summer. For now, here's a fascinating fact about "beardies." A clutch of twenty bearded dragon eggs, when hatched, can eat up to ONE THOUSAND (1,000) crickets in a week!

A New Year - A New Blog

Welcome to our classroom blog! Please visit often as we will soon begin sharing what is going on in our classroom with you. Our students will do most of the blogging and you will have the opportunity to comment on their entries.

I'm very excited about our upcoming Open House this Tuesday, August 3, from 5:30-8:00 p.m! This will be a chance for us to meet, possibly drop off your school supplies, listen to important news from our principal, Ms. Hart, and explore your new classroom. I can't wait to meet you!