Spotted Black Snake
The spotted black snake is also known as the blue-bellied black snake and is a venomous snake endemic to Australia. It can be variable in colour ranging from uniform black above, through to various degrees of spotting.
Spencer’s Monitor
The Spencer’s monitor is a ground-dwelling species that likes to take shelter in burrows and large soil cracks. The species can grow to approximately 1.2m and is sandy and brown in colouration.
Saw-Shelled Turtle
The saw-shelled turtle is a species of turtle in the Chelidae family endemic to Australia. The shell has marginal serrations which are the reason for its name. It retains some of these serrations throughout its life.
Red-Bellied Black Snake
This snake is dangerously venomous, but bites are rare because it is usually a placid and fairly docile snake, preferring to enact a lengthy bluff display with flattened neck and deep hisses rather than bite.
Pig-Nosed Turtle
The pig-nosed turtle's feet are flippers, resembling those of marine turtles. The nose looks like that of a pig, having the nostrils at the end of a fleshy snout, hence the common name.
Perentie
The perentie is Australia’s largest lizard reaching over 2.5 metres in length. It has a long neck and a stout, robust body ending in a long, tapering tail. The colour is yellow or cream with tawny brown rosettes edged in dark brown on their back and they have dark limbs with white spots.
New Caledonian Giant Gecko
The New Caledonian giant gecko is the world’s largest gecko, growing up to 36 centimetres long. This stout gecko has a short blunt tail and its skin, which has many loose folds, seems too big for its body.
Merten’s Water Monitor
As the name suggests, the Mertens’ water monitor loves the water. During the day the monitor can be found basking on rocks and logs near the shoreline of rivers, creeks, billabongs and lagoons.
Manning River Turtle
This striking medium sized freshwater turtle is known for their yellow markings on the underside of its shell, and tail, as well as a clear yellow stripe from the jaw, down to the neck of the shell.
Mainland Tiger Snake
A highly variable species, which does not always display the distinctive tiger stripes suggested by its common name. The body can be grey, olive-brown or almost black. In most specimens’ darker bands are visible.
Leopard Tortoise
The leopard tortoise is a large and attractively marked tortoise and is the fourth largest species of tortoise in the world. Typical adults can reach approximately 46cm in length and can weigh up to 18kg.
Land Mullet
Although it has a fishy name, the land mullet is actually the largest member of the skink family of lizards. Large adults can reach 50cm or more in total length.
Lace Monitor
The lace monitor grows to between 1.5m-2m in length, it is a dark steel grey above with pale yellow or cream bands or rows of spots. The jaws and snout are usually strongly barred with yellow and dark grey.
King Cobra
One of the most imposing (and famous) snakes in the world, the king cobra certainly lives up to its name. With lengths in excess of 5m and a body diameter of over 12cm, it is the longest venomous species of snake.
Jungle Python
The jungle carpet python is a vividly coloured python that at its most striking is brilliant yellow and black, although it can be tan and black. Its underbelly is usually white.
King Brown Snake (Mulga)
Despite its common name, the king brown snake is not a true brown snake but one of the black snake family. A bite from this snake would therefore be treated with black snake antivenom.
Inland Taipan
The inland taipan (also known as the fierce snake) can reach a total length of 2.5m, although 1.8m is the common length. The upper surface of the snake can vary from dark brown to a light straw colour.
Indian Star Tortoise
Aptly named for the star-like pattern on the shell this attractive land tortoise reaches a maximum length of around 35cm from a hatchling size of about 12cm. The upper shell or carapace is coloured...
Hosmer’s Skink
Hosmer’s skinks are stocky skinks that grow to 23 centimetres long, nearly half of which is the tail. The scales on their body have 3-4 sharp points (or keels) and the scales on the tail each have a long spine.
Heath Monitor
Also known as Rosenberg’s monitor, the species is It is dark grey above, finely spotted with yellow or white, and with paired, blackish cross-bands from the neck to the end of the tail.
Green Tree Python
An unmistakable arboreal or tree-dwelling python, the adult green tree python is emerald green in colour with a yellowish belly. Occasional specimens also have small white markings along the back.
Green Iguana
The green iguana is a fantastic looking creature. With a row of spines along its back and tail, its multitude of skin textures and its scaly beard or ‘dewlap’ under its chin, it looks like a miniature dragon.
Gila Monster
One of only few venomous lizard species in the world, the Gila monster is named after the Gila River in Arizona where is it was once common. The lizards grow to 60cm and have a solid body with blunted tail and head.
Galapagos Tortoise
Galapagos tortoises may reach a maximum shell length of over a metre and weigh up to 180 kg in weight. There are some 14 distinct subspecies inhabiting different islands in the Galapagos Island archipelago.
Frilled-Neck Lizard
The frilled lizard grows to around 45-90cm in length, about two-thirds of which is tail. It has a vivid yellow mouth and a large extendible frill gathered about the neck and under throat.
Freshwater Crocodile
The back of a freshwater crocodile is light brown usually with a number of black, irregular bands with the underside being creamy-white. They can be distinguished from the larger saltwater crocodile by their longer and thinner snout.
Fijian Crested Iguana
The critically endangered Fijian crested iguana is a brilliant green with three white stripes that are sometimes edged with black, these iguanas grow to 75cm long.
Eastern Water Dragon
The eastern water dragon's colour consists of shades of grey or brown with a series of black bands on the back and tail and a black stripe on the side of the head behind the eye.
Western Diamondback Rattlesnake
The Western diamondback rattlesnake is a venomous rattlesnake species likely responsible for the majority of snakebite fatalities in northern Mexico and the greatest number of snakebites in the U.S.A.
Stimson’s Python
The Stimson python, which is sometimes known as the large-blotched python, has a pattern of golden to red-brown or chocolate-brown patches on a light tan to yellow background.
Eastern Blue Tongue Lizard
The eastern blue tongue lizard is one of the most familiar reptiles in Australia. Large specimens may reach 60cm in total length. The legs are small and can often be overlooked, a situation which sometimes means the harmless bluetongue is mistaken for a snake.
Spotted Python
The spotted python is one of the shortest python species, growing to only a metre. Its ‘spots’ are really blotches of dark brown on a light brown background.
Eastern Brown Snake
A large adult Eastern brown snake may exceed two metres in length and, on hot days, can move at surprising speed. It has a slender body and is variable in colour ranging from uniform tan to grey or dark brown.
Solomon Island Skink
The Solomon Island skink is the world’s largest skink, growing to a length of 72 centimetres, although nearly half this length is the tail.
Eastern Bearded Dragon
The harsh, spiky appearance of these lizards belie their normally placid temperament. If approached in the wild, the bearded dragon’s usual response is to freeze and rely on its camouflage.
Shingleback Lizard
A close relative of the more familiar blue tongue lizard, the shingleback is an extremely distinctive member of the lizard family known as skinks.
Saltwater Crocodile
With its webbed feet and muscular tail flattened on both sides, the saltwater crocodile (popularly referred to as the ‘salty’) is able to propel itself through the water at surprising speed.
Rough Scaled Python
Known as one of the rarest snakes in wild Australia, the rough-scaled python is quite elusive in the wild but has become more popular in captive circles.
Reticulated Python
Generally regarded as the longest living snake with specimens having been recorded up to 10m. This large size means they are slow moving snakes ...
Cunningham’s Skink
The Cunningham’s skink's colour varies from those which are almost totally black with a few white spots, to others that are predominantly grey with black bands or others which have an overall rusty red colour.
Corn Snake
The common colour for corn snakes has a number of red-orange blotches on an orange-grey background colour combined with a black-and-white checked underbelly.
Death Adder
Death adders are easily distinguishable from other snakes by the very short, squat bodies, rapidly tapering tail and the broad triangular head. Colouration varies widely but most species exhibit some form of banded pattern in shades of brown or grey.
Coastal Taipan
The coastal taipan uses its fangs to inject a powerful venom into the body. A slender snake, it sports a light to dark brown body, and a cream/yellow belly with pink or orange flecks, the snake’s head is often a lighter brown than its body.
Central Netted Dragon
A small active dragon with an intricate reticulated or netlike pattern of dark lines over a pale grey-brown background. The head is rounded, and the legs and toes are strong to enable them to run at great speeds and to dig burrows.
Burmese Python
The beautiful Burmese python's distinctive patterning – dark brown blotches on a light tan background – means that it is often hunted for its skin, and so it is now a threatened species in the wild.
Brown Tree Snake
The brown tree snake is very distinctive because of its large head with bulging eyes and its long slender body. Lengths in excess of 2 metres have been recorded, though 1.5m - 1.8m is a more common size.
Ball Python
Ball pythons are so named because they form a tight ball when they are threatened. They have large round blotches of light brown on a dark brown background, though colours can vary from tan to yellow.
Argentine Black & White Tegu
Young tegus have an emerald green colour from the snout to their back while the rest of the body is black and white. As they grow older, the green colour fades, and the entire body becomes black and white.
American Alligator
The American alligator is extremely adept for a life in the water. The tail is flattened on both sides like an oar and is used to provide propulsion through the water.
Alligator Snapping Turtle
The alligator snapping turtle is one of the largest freshwater turtles in the world. They can weigh up to 90kg and the shell can reach three quarters of a metre in length.
Veiled Chameleon
The veiled chameleon is light green in colour when a hatchling but when they mature their colours can include gold, blue, greens, yellow, orange and black.
Komodo Dragon
Komodo dragons are the world’s largest lizard. They have long, flat heads with rounded snouts and mottled black/brown scale colour which enables them to lie undetected by passing prey.
