Blue-tailed monitor

Blue-tailed monitor
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Lacertilia
Family: Varanidae
Genus: Varanus
Subgenus: V. (Euprepiosaurus)
Species: V. doreanus
Binomial name
Varanus doreanus
(Meyer, 1874) [1]

The blue-tailed monitor, blue-tailed tree monitor or Kalabeck's monitor[1] (Varanus doreanus),[2][3] is a monitor lizard of the Varanidae family found throughout the Island of New Guinea, on the island of New Britain, and in the Bismarck Archipelago.[4] The blue-tailed monitor is also found in Australia on the tip of the Cape York Peninsula. It belongs to the indicus group of the subgenus Euprepiosaurus. Varanus doreanus has not yet been evaluated by the IUCN.[2]

Description

The blue-tailed monitor is basically greyish-blue in colour. Scales on its neck are smooth and oval. This lizard can reach a total length up to 135 cm.[1]

Subspecies

Two subspecies have been described:

The latter has since been elevated to full-species status as Varanus finschi.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Monitor-lizards.net".
  2. 1 2 "EOL.org".
  3. Reptile-database.reptarium.cz
  4. JCVI.org

Further reading

1874

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