English: PUBLISHED:

12go.asia/en/philippines/mindoro

animals.net/water-monitor/

---

Monitor lizard is the common name of several large lizard species, comprising the genus Varanus. They are native to Africa, Asia and Oceania, but are now found also in the Americas as an invasive species.

Monitor lizards have long necks, powerful tails and claws, and well-developed limbs. The adult length of extant species ranges from 20 cm (7.9 in) in some species, to over 3 m (10 ft) in the case of the Komodo dragon, though the extinct varanid known as megalania (Varanus priscus) may have been capable of reaching lengths of as much as 7 m (23 ft). Most monitor species are terrestrial, but arboreal and semiaquatic monitors are also known. While most monitor lizards are carnivorous, eating eggs, smaller reptiles, fish, birds and small mammals, some also eat fruit and vegetation, depending on where they live. A total of 78 species are currently recognized; however, given that several species-groups are in need of taxonomic review, this number is certain to be increased with future research.

The marbled water monitor or Philippine water monitor (Varanus marmoratus) is a large species of monitor lizards found in the Philippines. It can reach a total length of 200 cm. It is found on various islands of the northern Philippines, including Luzon and Mindoro.

The monitor lizard from Palawan, Calamian Islands, and the Sulu Archipelago was recently described as a new species, "Varanus palawanensis". It has enough differences to be considered a distinct species from the closely related water monitor, marbled water monitor, and Varanus rasmusseni. V. palawanensis belongs to the subgenus Soterosaurus with these other species.

This was taken on the beach close to the entrance to The Underground River, one of the new “7 Wonders of Nature”