Burton's legless lizard occurs almost Australia wide but it is absent in parts of southern Australia including Tasmania.
This species is also found in Papua New Guinea, although populations are limited to one small area.

Burton's legless lizard is found in a variety of habitats from deserts to the margins of rainforests but not in southern alpine areas and extreme northern deserts as would be expected based on its distribution.
It is usually found in low vegetation or debris on the ground such as leaf litter which has been shown to be important to specimens located in tropical environments.
This was demonstrated in an experiment where individuals were given a choice of several thermally comparable environments and there was an overwhelming preference for leaf litter by specimens from the tropics.
In areas where leaf litter is not as readily available this species will use grasses, abandoned burrows and other shelter that it can find as habitat.
Burton's legless lizard occurs almost Australia wide but it is absent in parts of southern Australia including Tasmania. This species is also found in Papua New Guinea, although populations are limited to one small area.
Burton's legless lizard is found in a variety of habitats from deserts to the margins of rainforests but not in southern alpine areas and extreme northern deserts as would be expected based on its distribution. It is usually found in low vegetation or debris on the ground such as leaf litter which has been shown to be important to specimens located in tropical environments. This was demonstrated in an experiment where individuals were given a choice of several thermally comparable environments and there was an overwhelming preference for leaf litter by specimens from the tropics. In areas where leaf litter is not as readily available this species will use grasses, abandoned burrows and other shelter that it can find as habitat.
Burton's legless lizard