Enter the Savannah monitor lizard, aka Bosc’s monitor. These large reptiles can be found in sub-Saharan Africa from Senegal on east to Sudan and down south to the Rift Valley and the Congo River. They prefer grassland areas, Savannahs, rocky, semi-desert habitats, woodlands, and open forest habitats. Although they face threats in the form of over-collection for the pet trade and trapping for the collection of their skin and other body parts – used in traditional medicine, these lizards are still listed as Least Concern by the IUCN… for now.
First the Stats…
Scientific name: Varanus exanthematicus
Weight: Up to 5+ lbs.
Length: Up to 5 feet, including tail
Lifespan: Up to 13+ years
Now on to the Facts!
1.) Even though they can climb, they prefer to live a terrestrial (spend most of their existence on the ground) life.
2.) In the wild, these large critters are solitary and territorial.
3.) While reared in captivity, and handled properly, they can become almost loyal and friendly pets.
4.) Like other monitors, their means of defending their territory can be witnessed as huffing and puffing, hissing, gaping (opening their mouth to bear their teeth), inflating their throats, and thrashing their tails about.
5.) A group of monitors, although not often found, is called a lounge.
But wait, there’s more on the Savannah monitor!
6.) Savannah monitors prey on beetles, scorpions, snails, millipedes, snakes, small mammals, birds, lizards, eggs, and even carrion (dead animals).
7.) Females lay up to 50 eggs that incubate in up to 6 months.
Did you know…?
If all their threats fail to do the trick, they may simply feign death (play dead).
8.) Hatchlings are born precocial (self-sufficient at birth).
9.) Savannah monitors often use their partially prehensile tail to whip an attacker, with surprising accuracy.
10.) More than 100,000 wild individuals are exported every year for the pet trade and skin trade!
Now a Short Savannah Monitor Video!
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