A proud nine-year-old boy has taken his pet lizard to school to give a special talk about reptiles.

Joseph hopes to be a herpetologist when he’s older and spoke with affection about his bearded dragon Amber.

The Monmouth School Boys’ Prep pupil bought Amber just over a year ago from the Bristol Reptile Emporium.

“I told the boys about Amber’s lifestyle, habitat, diet, life in captivity and what you need to do to look after bearded dragons,” explained Joseph.

“The reason we named her Amber was because she has an amber bit under her chin.”

He added: “She eats crickets, locusts and mealworms and can even eat cockroaches.

“Bearded dragons are really lovely creatures but some people don’t see the lovely side of them.”

Bearded dragons are a popular species among children because of their friendly and calm nature, and the relative ease of caring for them.

Captive adults reach about 40cm to 61cm in length and can live for up to 14 years with good care.

Joseph was invited to give a talk to his peers by Dr Wall (pictured below), the Science and Technology teacher and Co-ordinator at Monmouth School Boys’ Prep.

“I knew that Joseph was very knowledgeable on the subject of reptiles and I always like opportunities for the boys to teach each other,” said Dr Wall.

“I like to get the boys as hands-on as I can with all topics and invited Joseph to put together a little talk and to bring in Amber if he wanted to.”

Dr Wall added: “Joseph did a fantastic job, talking very well and taking and answering questions from his peers.

“The other boys loved the talk and particularly the opportunity to stroke and see Amber close up which enabled us to talk through how she displays the features of reptiles.”