Adventurous Eastern Water Dragon #1
Today, for my Daily Digital post, I am sharing the first of a series of mixed media images which I have created by applying digital effects to an original photo.
This Eastern Water Dragon loves travelling and if you follow this series you will see where his adventures lead him. Today he discovered a dark and misty forest. It was a little eerie to begin with and he felt completely out of his comfort zone but after he climbed up on a rock to take a closer look at his surroundings, he knew he wasn't alone because he spied a bike resting beneath a tree on the side of the path.
Eastern Water Dragons (Physignathus Lesueurii) grow up to 80-90cm in length, most of which, is their tails. They are characterized by their grey/brownish colour and their black bands on their back and tail. There is also a black stripe on the side of their heads behind their eyes.
Their bellies are creamy white in colour but the males often have a red tinge on their belly or chest. Enlarged scales form a crest down the middle of their head, back and tail. Their legs are quite long and very powerful and their strong tails are flattened on the sides which enables them to swim well.
Here is the original photo.
Eastern Water dragons are situated in eastern coastal areas of Australia and they inhabit areas from north Queensland to Gippsland in Eastern Victoria. Great tree climbers, they love stretching out on branches which overhang the water. If they feel threatened, they slip into the water and swim to the bottom and wait for danger to pass and they can stay under the water for approximately 30 minutes at a time.
Small reptiles, worms, frogs, insects, vegetation, fruit, small mammals and molluscs make up their diet. Males rule effectively over a harem of females and females lay about a dozen eggs in excavated, sandy holes. Their young hatch in about 3 months and they mimic their parents by learning how to defend themselves as soon as they hatch.
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