Why Do Bearded Dragons Head Bob And Black Beard?!

In summary - Bearded dragons head bob and black beard for mating purposes, or to display dominance over other bearded dragons, as they are territorial animals.

Bearded Dragon Head Bobbing

Head bobbing is an up-and-down movement of the head done by both males and females. It can be done either fast or slowly. It furthermore, can be combined with other behaviors like bearding, stomping, and the waving of the arms. A combination of these behaviors or a lack of certain ones can mean different things.

DOMINANCE: Fast head bobbing along with bearding is a sign of dominance (Sometimes the bobbing will lead to stomping). They do this when another bearded dragon has entered their territory and they want them gone. The other dragon will either submit, which is done by slow bobbing along with the wave of an arm, or they will return the bearding and fast bobbing, which is him saying he wants to fight for the territory. This applies to only males. Females do not really assert dominance with this type of behavior, their hierarchy is determined by their size, but sometimes they do not get along and need to assert their hierarchy. Females will have similar behavior when they assert dominance, but females will either get along or go straight to fighting. This does not mean there will not be any of the above-mentioned behavior.

MATING: The male mating ritual consists of the male trying to impress the female by bearding and bobbing really fast. If the female accepts him as a mate she will slowly bob about 2-4 times while waving her arm. When she doesn’t accept she will either run away or show dominance toward the male.

Bearded Dragon Puffing Out Beard/Black Beard

Although both the male and female bearded dragon makes use of this ‘technique’, it is mostly used by the male. The females will do this to tell others to stay away. They will also do this if they are threatened and they are trying to look bigger to scare off whatever is threatening them. Males do use this technique as a defense, same as the females, but they have other uses for this as well, one of them being, to establish hierarchy. Males will have black beards and head bobbing to establish territory or look bigger when preparing to fight with another male, who will return the gesture unless he is submitting. They will, furthermore, combine head bobbing and black beard to get mating approval from a female.

Take Note! Males and females will, moreover, also get a black beard when they are Ill or in pain. If the black beard persists for more than 5 hours, it is most likely due to illness and not behavior.