Arnold Uy kindly sent me a photo of a Desert
Monitor Varanus griseus he took recently
near Al Asfar Lake, Hofuf that he has also kindly allowed me to use some on my
website and is shown below. Copyright remains with Arnold. The Desert Monitor
is a species of monitor lizard with three subspecies, the one occurring in
Saudi Arabia being Varanus griseus
griseus also called the Grey Monitor. This subspecies is found from
Northern Africa throughout the Sahara, Arabian Peninsula and southwestern Asia
eastwards to northwestern India. It has 5-8 narrow grey bands on the back as
well as 19-28 bands on the tail, the highest number of bands of any subspecies.
Its tail is more rounded that those of the other subspecies and the final size
of the adults average around one to 1.3 mtres in length (approximately 55–65 cm
excluding their tail) with their overall body size dependent on the available
food supply, the time of year, environmental climate, and reproductive state,
with males generally larger than females. The body is long and robust, with
sturdy limbs, and a long, powerful tail which can be used liked a whip in
defence as they are aggressive reptiles. The nostrils of this species are
particularly distinctive, comprising diagonal slits much closer to the eye than
the tip of the snout. Their coloration can be a simple grey if living in
desert-like ecosystems, to more brilliantly colored if living in areas with
large amounts of plant growth. It is a carnivorous lizard that feeds on a wide
range of vertebrates and invertebrates with the most common prey consisting of
lizards and snakes, but can also include ground-nesting birds and other small
mammals. They hibernate from September to April becoming most active between
the months of May and July. They are active during the day, emerging from their
burrows in the early morning, and basking in the sun at the entrance in order
to raise their body temperature often staying in their burrows during the heat
of the day. During a single day, Desert Monitors range over large distances,
usually between five and six kilometres, returning to their burrow before sunset.
They are predominantly desert-dwelling, although can occupy a variety of arid
and semi-arid habitats with a specific habitat requirement being the presence
of sand or soft soil in which tracks can be made for communication and
orientation. Their skin is adapted to the desert environment in which they
live, and they are excellent swimmers sometimes entering water to hunt for food
and have a lifespan of approximately eight years.
