Agricultural
11 March, 2026
Have you seen any dragons lately?
Pittsworth Landcare has recently met with researchers from the University of Queensland (UQ) who are eager to liaise with landholders in the Darling Downs Condamine basin as they search for the Condamine Earless Dragon (Tympanocryptis condaminensis).
The Condamine Earless Dragon is a small, critically endangered lizard endemic to Queensland and restricted to the Condamine floodplain and surrounding areas west of Toowoomba.
The reptile is six centimetres long from snout to vent (the base of its tail) and can be found in native grasslands, croplands and on the verges of roadsides.
The Threatened Species Recovery Hub, completed in 2021, named the dragon as one of Australia’s most imperiled snakes and lizards.
Researchers Eleanor Knox and Eloise Tighe are keen to speak with landholders about their perspectives on stewardship, reptile conservation and land management to further their recent scientific work on the Condamine Earless Dragon project.
“They’ve [dragons] lost more than 99 per cent of their habitat and they’re still persisting, so we’re out there to try and find why,” Ms Tighe said.
Kev Loveday of Pittsworth Landcare said it wasn’t so long ago that no one had even heard of the Condamine Earless Dragon.
“All of sudden, we’ve got these cute little lizards out on the black soil plains of the Darling Downs,” he said.
“This is a highly developed agricultural area, everybody knows that, there’s people ploughing and running cattle.
“Now we’re looking up in trees for koalas and we’re looking on the ground for earless dragons.”
Mr Loveday encouraged landholders to be aware of the wildlife, especially endangered species, that may be on their land.
Ms Knox and Ms Tighe might be able to help find the Condamine Earless Dragon on or near your property, even if you haven’t!
Contact them directly: Eleanor Knox on 0436 404 957 or email eleanor.knox@student.uq.edu.au or Eloise Tighe on 0456 799 681 or email e.tighe@uq.net.au
