Bearded Dragon Body Language
HEAD BOBBING - is a body language that signifies Dominance. Both males and females can bob their heads. They move their head up and down in a rather quick motion - sometimes this gesture can be accompanied by a flared and/or blackened beard. This particular body language is in most cases saying "WHO's the boss!"
Some Dragons actually do it to show frustration and displeasure.
WAVING - This gesture is mostly done by babies, juveniles, and sometimes adult submissive females/males. You most commonly see this amongst babies and juveniles though. They raise their arm and wave in a slow motion, sometimes even alternating between arms. This gesture is pretty much saying "hey, I don't want any problems - lets be friends"!
NODDING - This gesture sometimes is hard to see unless you watch carefully. I have seen both male and female adults doing this gesture but it seems to be most commonly done with adult males. Sometimes when adult males are together if one starts bobbing the other less dominant male will nod. The nod is their acknowledgment to the more Dominant male that he concedes that he is the more Dominant one and doesn't want any problems.
BOWING - Is a submissive gesture. Most commonly done by female sub-adults and adults. Bowing is usually followed by a bobbing & beard display session by a Dominant male. She is showing him her submission to him by deep bowing to him. You see a lot of bowing especially during breeding season. If she doesn't bow to him he sometimes becomes very annoyed by her not acknowledging Him as "king" and may chase her down and pin her down by biting on a flap of skin just below her neck near her shoulder. At this time she usually will raise one arm up to him as he is pinning her down as if she is saying "Uncle"!
BEARD DISPLAY - This can be performed by both males and females. It can mean several different things. It can be done during a simple morning stretch or as a Dominant behavior. Dragons can also show off their beards if they are scared or threatened. Beneath their "beard" skin is a bone like structure they "blow out" giving the appearance of a beard. They can also blacken their beards and this color can actually spread down into their chest area!
FLAIR, TWISTING & FLATTENING - This gesture can be done by all age groups and both sexes. Most commonly done by Dominant males. They do this when they feel threatened or when more than one male are near a desired female. They flair out their beard, sometimes blackening it as well... Flattening and twisting their body to give the appearance of being larger to the predator or other male dragon(s). Often when it is another male dragon they will reciprocate and do the exact same thing and then the two males will walk in a circle in a duel type stand off... Watch out if this happens with two or more males... It means a fight may soon follow! It is best to separate them at this point or one or both of them could get injured!
TAIL CURL - This gesture is usually seen during feeding time :) Their tail is curled upward from the middle of the tail and sometimes from near the tail base.
RAISED TAIL - Adult Females tend to do this during breeding season showing their submission and willingness to mate.
GAPING - All dragons young and old do this gesture... It's actually more of a necessity. Bearded dragons gape to help regulate their body temperature. If they are hot they gape to release excess heat in hopes to get a little cooler. If gaping doesn't solve their problem, they will move to another area of the cage where the temperature is more to their liking at the moment. Gaping is when a bearded dragon opens his mouth and sits there with it open for a while. When they do this they are usually in the basking zone.
