Dragon or dinosaur? Scaly Spyro challenging children to think about genetics

A desert dweller resembling a dinosaur has been captivating curious minds. Children have been relishing the chance to get up close and personal with a bearded dragon called Spyro during the school holidays. As Tūhura Otago Museum draws visitors to its Dinosaurs: Surviving Extinction exhibition, youngsters have been challenged to decide if Spyro’s scaly-looking appearance means he is a present-day descendant.

Living environments co-ordinator Samantha Edwards-Ingle cares for the 2-year-old reptile in the Science Centre enclosure. “Because we’ve got our dinosaur exhibition going on and he’s probably one of the closest-looking things to a live dinosaur that we’ve got, we ask people, what do you guys reckon, do you reckon he’s a dinosaur?’’ Ms Edwards-Ingle said.

“He looks like a dinosaur, he’s got scales like a dinosaur. “He’s got feet, arms and claws like a dinosaur.” Spyro the bearded dragon is a firm favourite of visitors to Tūhura Otago Museum. Photo: Sam Henderson However, Spyro is not closely related to the extinct giants.

“Looks-wise, not genetics-wise.” Spyro arrived at the museum when he was a couple of months old. He is native to the arid deserts and woodlands of Australia. His enclosure features a heat lamp reaching 40°C, alongside areas regulated at about 25°C so he can pick and choose where he sits.

“If he wants to bask and show off, he’ll come up on to the log up here underneath the heat lamp,” Ms Edwards-Ingle said. He absorbs vitamin D from the light to build healthy bones. As an omnivore, he eats different kinds of bugs, vegetation and fruit.

“His favourite here is mealworms. That’s his favourite food. And bok choy, of all things.” Spyro the bearded dragon is a firm favourite of visitors to Tūhura Otago Museum.

Photo: Sam Henderson The reptile has a type of third eye on top of his head that can detect shadows and temperature changes. “So they can see if there’s going to be like a bird swooping them and they can move and run away quickly.” The bearded dragon’s name refers to a spiked beard he puffs out when frightened to appear larger.

“He can change the colours of it as well. “He can make it go completely black, and that’s how you know that he’s pissed off.” Despite his fierce capabilities, Spyro has a calm and gentle temperament. “He’s genuinely quite a really chill little dude.

“The nicest little lizard I’ve ever met. "He has never, ever, ever tried to bite or be aggressive or anything like that,’’ Ms Edwards-Ingle said. sam.henderson@thestar.co.nz