Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have a 75 gallon tank with three adult bearded dragons. Two are 11 years old (male and female), and the other is around 6 or 7. The 6/7 year old recently started acting very agitated and restless (which i know is a sign that they are gravid). However, I know that my male has not shown any interest in her. She has laid eggs in the past but they were not viable. I suppose I haven't heard of dragons just laying unfertilized eggs. Though I suppose there is the possibility that they are fertilized.
Ironically, my boyfriend has had the same issue with his two dragons. He has a pair but they are only months old. The female laid a total of 16 eggs over a weekend that he was gone.

Is this normal behavior if they have gone through a cooling cycle? I don't normally cool out my dragons but I've moved in the last year and I know that the temperatures are cooler here than they were at my previous location.

Any advice?

Beardies do lay unfertilized eggs. If you have a male and a female together you can get fertilized eggs even if the male doesn't show interest in the female while you are around. Some don't care and some will wait till you are not around and then get their business on. If you are not interested in hatching the eggs I hear that you can just freeze them and then dispose of them. Im sure someone else with more experince with this will post throught the day.

In general, the females want to be mated. If the available male cannot or will not mate her she will still be restless for another male. Often she will become the aggressor and try to mate the male or the other female from a males angle in order to get them interested.

Maybe a story is easier to understand. I have 2 females hatched last May living together. One is 400 grams and one is 300 grams. About 6 weeks ago the big one was bothering the smaller. She was head bobbing and biting. The smaller would not eat, etc. I mated the bigger with a suitable mate and returned her to the enclosure with the smaller. The problem ended. The bigger has laid one clutch and will lay her 2nd shortly.

Now the smaller beats up on the bigger. She is frustrated and attempts to mate the bigger female. She still hardly eats. I'm waiting to see if she will lay infertiles. I know if I mated her she would calm down. But, no dragon here lays less than 4 clutches so I'd rather not put her through that yet.

That is most helpful. I guess my next question would be what causes this to happen? Would it be because of a cooling period? I'm just confused because my females have never done this before. And they are much older than most. Is this something I can prevent in the future?

Females produce infertile eggs if they haven't been mated before or still have viable sperm. Far as I know, it doesn't matter if they are cooled or not. If the dragon decides to lay eggs she will, fertile or otherwise.

Three dragons in a 75 gal tank does sound crowded though, which may be why they never produced eggs before. Some animals won't reproduce if in condition they don't consider ideal.

My female burmated two winters now, but hasn't produced infertile eggs at all. Nor does she show any desire to have a mate. I think its more if they can smell a male, or see one, then they will want to mate...I don't own a male bearded dragon, so she doesn't feel the urge.
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PHLdyPayne

I have 23 dragons. 8 females. There is really no normal. The only thing I can say is that if they lay eggs this year they will again next year.

I had 3 unmated females less than a year old last year. One laid 6 clutches of infertile eggs. The other 2 didn't lay at all last year. Their conditions were identical. All 3 are laying eggs this year. The infertile egg layer is living with a smaller male of about the same age since the fall. He puts on a good show but doesn't get the deed done. She is laying infertiles again this year. The other 2 were mated once each but do not live with a male. They live together temporarily with the female I had to have spayed. The 2 that were mated once and live together are laying fertile eggs.

Does anyone know why females will lay infertile eggs? My older female has laid 2 clutches this year, first clutch was 19 or 20 and the second was around 10. It doesn't make sense to me...Why do they put so much energy towards laying infertile eggs?...just curious. Thanks.
-Ryan

Like humans their bodies produce eggs in the hope of finding a suitable mate. Most people never realize that human females lay infertile egg/eggs every month.

Never thought of it that way. Great point!