T
he female Shingleback met her demise when she got her head trapped in some chicken wire and was
unable to pull free. But her faithful partner refused to leave, and stayed close for two days after her
death....
“He’d come and revisit her every half hour or so: he’d be nudging her, he’d be tongue flicking. It was as if he
was saying, ’What’s wrong?’” Professor Michael Bull, of Flinders University, uncovered some remarkable
behaviour amongst the Shinglebacks of Bundey Bore Station in an epic 35-year study with which his name will
always be synonymous. “Everyone tells us that lizards don’t grieve, because they’re not humans. But they’re
doing what we think is analogous to grief. It certainly demonstrates the strength of the pair bond – that it
persists beyond death.”
Initially, Professor Bull’s research concentrated on the ticks that parasitise the lizards, which he once rather
unflatteringly described as ‘big, slow-moving skinks’! At first, he assumed that the springtime courting
behaviour of Shinglebacks was common knowledge, but then he observed pairs that remained together in
subsequent years and discovered that this was apparently unique amongst lizards. His marathon survey
delivered some amazing insights into the ecology of a species that quite possibly may have more common
names than any other organism on the planet (Pinecone Lizard; Sleepy Lizard; Bobtail; Stumpy-tail; Boggi;
Two-headed Lizard). In addition to adhering to a system of perennial monogamy, we now know that
Shinglebacks maintain long term relationships with other conspecifics and have a complex social structure.
They show considerable prowess at navigating back to their home territories, and can live for 50 years in their
natural environment. Some individuals that were first caught as adults more than 35 years ago are still going
strong today.
Although Professor Bull continued to be actively involved, in 1983 Dale Burzacott took on the role of project
manager. Displaying a relentless enthusiasm for his task, he was to capture and recapture more than 34,000
Shinglebacks at Bundey Bore, which is nestled at the foot of the Mount Lofty Ranges. Over time, innovations
such as GPS tracking and DNA analysis were introduced. Besides confirming the longevity of the
Shinglebacks, and of their monogamous pair bonds, the sheer duration and magnitude of the project enables
examination of the impact of factors such as climate change and land usage, for which long-term data is
essential.
In 2016, Professor Bull was interviewed by Ann Jones of the ABC, in association with the Shingleback project
(see link below). Not long afterwards, at the age of 69 he suffered a fatal heart attack one morning after
completing his normal daily exercise regimen. The onerous task of informing Dale Burzacott - who had worked
hand-in-hand with Mike Bull for 35 years - fell to Associate Professor Mike Gardner. Ironically, Burzacott was
in the field at Bundy Bore at the time.
All photos courtesy Steve Wilson.