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Perentie Australia's largest lizard and third largest in the world. It is in the same family as the komodo dragon from eastern Indonesia. |
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Perentie Australia's largest lizard and third largest in the world. It is in the same family as the komodo dragon from eastern Indonesia. |
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An extremely large long necked monitor reaching .8m-2.5m in length from snout to vent and can weigh up to 100kgs.
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This photograph was taken at Cape Range National Park near Exmouth in the campground right down at the ocean. |
In Western Australia they are found in the arid interior to the north-west coast. Mainly found in the Pilbara and Mid-west regions favouring rocky outcrops, gorges and stony soils or sand plains with hummock grasses. Shelters in deep burrows or crevices of rocks. Check out our video of this Perentie in the wild at Ningaloo Cape Range campground. We found this Perenti to be docile and we were within 30cm of it. |
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Monitors have powerful hind legs that enable them to run at great speeds. Some may climb a tree. To escape they hiss, raise up on their hind legs and flex their throat, they can also bite and their tail can be whipped around in defense. Do not try to catch one of these powerful monitors.
They can also swim |
This photograph was taken at Armadale Reptile Centre in Perth. |
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What do they eat? They are diurnal and so feed during the day. Sometimes they dig out their food. They feed on small reptiles including snakes, bird eggs, mammals and carrion (dead animals). They may travel several kilometres in search of food. Their teeth are long and sharp for tearing and gripping their prey.
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A couple of mates' hanging out |
These photographs were taken at Perth Zoo |
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These monitors have a long slender forked tongue. This helps the monitor smell by collecting the air-bourne particles and taking them in to the organ in the top of its mouth. They taste for potential food, scents marking territories, potential enemies or to find a potential mate. |
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The females give off a scent to attract the males. Several males may congregate to mate with the female but only one will win. He sometimes fights the other males where they both stand on their hind legs grabbing each other with their forelimbs and trying to unbalance the other with hissing and possible biting. About 9 eggs are laid in a long hole dug under a rock and take 6-12 months to hatch. |
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written and graphical Copyright © Wildlife Education Services 2003. |
