11 Fascinating Bearded Dragon Morphs You Need to Know

Discover unique traits and care tips for each bearded dragon morph

Bearded Dragon Morphs
Credit:

The Spruce / Yifan Wu

Key Takeaways

  • **Classic or Standard Morph**: The most common and least expensive morph, resembling the wild bearded dragon in appearances and often found in a variety of colors.
  • **German Giant Morph**: A larger type of bearded dragon that requires more space due to its size.
  • **Silkback Morph**: Known for its smooth, spike-less back and vibrant colors, but requires more specialized care.

Bearded dragons come in various colors and patterns, known as morphs or mutations. These morphs may feature different colors, spikes, scales, head shapes, nail colors, and patterns. Morphs also determine a bearded dragon's body type or size.

Some morphs can be pricey and are less common than others, so it's wise to be informed before purchasing a bearded dragon. Here are 11 types of morphs to help you find your unique bearded dragon.

  • 01 of 11

    Classic or Standard Morph

    Standard Beardie
    Standard bearded dragon morph. Credit:

    Chris O'Brien / Getty Images

    Recognized as the basic bearded dragon, the classic or standard morph resembles its wild counterpart. Standard morphs have backs covered in small spikes, large triangular heads, and a beard. They come in various colors such as tan, red, yellow, with black and orange markings. These are the most common and typically the least expensive morphs.

  • 02 of 11

    Dunner Morph

    Dunner Morph Beardie
    Dunner bearded dragon morphs often have spots. Credit:

    7thgalaxydragons.com 

    Named after the breeder who created them, the Dunner morph looks similar to a classic breaded dragon morph except there is no obvious pattern to their scales. The markings of a Dunner morph seem to go in any direction, instead of the typical stripes found fairly symmetrical on many other types of bearded dragons. Dunner morphs often have spots, and their scales are not organized, so even patternless Dunner morphs can be identified from their unorganized scales. Often they also have more scales than other morphs.

  • 03 of 11

    German Giant Morph

    German Giant Morph Beardie
    German giants will look like classic bearded dragon morphs until they are full grown. Credit:

    Les Stocker / Getty Images

    Appearing just like a standard or classic morph, the German giant morph is a very large bearded dragon. It is difficult to know whether or not you have a German giant until they are full-grown, and these morphs require a much larger enclosure because of their size.

  • 04 of 11

    Hypomelanistic Morph

    Hypomelanistic Morph Beardie
    Hypomelanistic bearded dragons lack dark pigments. Credit:

    Rhea C / Flickr / CC by 2.0

    The term hypomelanistic means "below normal color" and in the case of a hypomelanistic bearded dragon morph, these dragons look somewhat pastel in coloration. Hypomelanistic morphs are unable to produce dark patterns and colors. Their nails are also usually clearer than those of other morphs, and they simply appear muted in color when compared to that of a standard morph. This morph type is fairly common and has a body type with spikes, just like the standard bearded dragon morph.

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  • 05 of 11

    Leatherback Morph

    Leatherback Morph Beardie (Juvenile)
    Leatherback bearded dragon morphs have smooth backs but spikes on their sides. Credit:

    Michel Gunther / Getty Images

    The main identifying trait of a leatherback bearded dragon morph is its smooth back. Leatherback morphs do not have spikes on their backs but do have them on their heads and sides. The lack of spikes on their backs also makes their colors appear more vivid and therefore makes them a popular bearded dragon morph. These are a more rare type of bearded dragon morph than the standard and hypomelanistic morphs.

  • 06 of 11

    Paradox Morph

    Paradox Morph Beardie
    Paradox bearded dragons can have splotches of different colors on their bodies. Credit:

    spicedragons.com

    This uniquely patterned morph was created by crossbreeding a combination of several different bearded dragon morphs. A paradox morph is obvious to spot since it has blotches of bright colors on its body. They look as though paint was splattered on their bodies in no obvious pattern.

  • 07 of 11

    Silkback Morph

    Slikback Morph Beardie (Juvenile)
    Silkback morphs are smooth. Credit:

    Michel Gunther / Getty Images

    Possibly one of the most unique types of bearded dragon morphs, the silkback is completely lacking the classic spikes that other bearded dragons have. They have smooth skin and vibrant colors since there are no scales impeding them. Silkbacks are also referred to as silkies because of how soft their skin feels. They are more difficult to care for than other bearded dragon morphs.

  • 08 of 11

    Translucent Morph

    Translucent Morph Beardie (Juvenile)
    Translucent bearded dragons can also be hypomelanistic. Credit:

    Michel Gunther / Getty Images

    As its name implies, the translucent bearded dragon morph is named as such due to its almost see-through spikes and scales. Translucent morphs are also commonly hypomelanistic so they are typically lighter in color. Baby translucent morphs have an almost clear belly that appears blue, like that of a leopard gecko, and adults typically have solid dark eyes where no iris is visible and occasionally blue eyelids. These unique eyes are what most obviously sets this morph apart from the others.

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  • 09 of 11

    Wero Morph

    Wero Morph Beardie
    Wero bearded dragons are strikingly beautiful. Credit:

     7thgalaxydragons.com 

    A combination of the witblits and the zero morphs has produced a newer morph called the wero. The wero often resembles the zero morph except it has splotches of darker colors near its tail.

  • 10 of 11

    Witblits Morph

    WitBlit Morph Beardie (Juvenile)
    Witblits are gaining in popularity. Credit:

    carolinaclassicdragons.com 

    Not quite a zero, but more muted than a hypomelanistic, the witblits morph is a very pale colored dragon with no patterns. They can come in different solid colors.

  • 11 of 11

    Zero Morph

    (F) White Hypo Morph Beardie
    (F) White Hypo Morph Beardie. Credit:

    @rlegacyreptiles916 / Instagram

    Extremely rare, the zero bearded dragon morph is completely lacking of patterns and colors. These white bearded dragons are growing in popularity.