Finsch's Monitor
Finsch's monitor (Varanus finschi) is a species of Monitor Lizard found in New Guinea and Australia.[2]
Finsch's monitor was only known from Blanche Bay, Ralum and Massawa in New Britain.[3][4] Further research on the available museum specimen enlarged the range of the species, which currently includes the Bismarck Archipelago (New Ireland), New Guinea and Queensland, Australia.[5][6] The specimen from Queensland lacks any fixed data on its locality, so the exact distribution of Finsch's Monitor in northern Australia remains unknown.[2] Varanus finschi is found in multiple types of habitats: mangrove forest, inland forest, fresh cut clearings, coconut plantations and rocky beaches.[7] It belongs to the subgenus Euprepiosaurus along with the closely related Ceram Mangrove and Peach Throat Monitors.[8]
Description
The dorsal pattern of Varanus finschi adults consists of "black ocelli, which are often arranged in irregular transverse rows - with a yellowish center on a dark grayish background."[2] The dark head of Varanus finschi is speckled with many yellowish spots. Its tongue color is pink.[9]
References
- ^ Zipcodezoo
- ^ a b c d "Monitor-lizards.net". http://www.monitor-lizards.net/species/euprepiosaurus/finschi.html. Retrieved 28 April 2010.
- ^ Böhme,W., H. G. Horn & T. ZIEGLER (1994). Zur Taxonomie der Pazifikwarane (Varanus-indicus-Komplex): Revalidierung von Varanus doreanus (A. B. Meyer, 1874) mit Beschreibung einer neuen Unterart. Salamandra 30 (2): 119-142.
- ^ JCVI.org
- ^ Ziegler,T.; Philipp,K.M. & Boehme, W. (1999). Zum Artstatus und zur Genitalmorphologie von Varanus finschi BOHME, Horn & Ziegler 1994, mit neuen Verbreitungsangaben fur V. finschi und V. doreanus (MEYER 1874) (Reptilia: Sauria: Varanidae). Zool. Abh. Mus. Tierk. Dresden 50 (2): 267-279
- ^ Ziegler, T.; Böhme, W.; Eidenmüller, B. & Philipp, K. 2001. A note on the coexistence of three species of Pacific monitor lizards in Australia (Sauria, Varanidae, Varanus indicus group). Bonn. Zool. Beitr. 50 (1-2): 27-30
- ^ Hediger,H. (1934). Beitrag zur Herpetologie und Zoogeographie Neu-Britanniens und einiger umliegender Gebiete. Zool. Jahrb. (Syst.) 65: 389-582.
- ^ Kingsnake.com (Retrieved April 28, 2010
- ^ Sprackland, R. G. 1999. New species of monitor (Squamata: Varanidae) from Indonesia. Reptile Hobbyist, 4 (6): 20-27
Further reading
- Ast, Jennifer C. (2001). Mitochondrial DNA Evidence and Evolution in Varanoidea (Squamata). Cladistics 17 (3): 211-226 [erratum in 18 (1):125]
- De Lisle, H.F. (1996). Natural History of Monitor Lizards. Krieger, Malabar (Florida)
- Koch A, Arida E, Schmitz A, Böhme W, Ziegler T. 2009. Refining the polytypic species concept of mangrove monitors (Squamata: Varanus indicus group): a new cryptic species from the Talaud Islands, Indonesia, reveals the underestimated diversity of Indo-Australian monitor lizards. Australian Journal of Zoology 57(1): 29-40
- Philipp,K.M.; Ziegler, T. & Böhme, W. 2007. Preliminary Investigations of the Natural Diet of Six Monitor Lizard Species of the Varanus (Euprepiosaurus) indicus Group. Mertensiella 16: 336-345
- Ziegler, T., Schmitz, A., Koch, A. & W. Böhme 2007. A review of the subgenus Euprepiosaurus of Varanus (Squamata: Varanidae): morphological and molecular phylogeny, distribution and zoogeography, with an identification key for the members of the V. indicus and the V. prasinus species groups. Zootaxa 1472: 1-28
- Ziegler, T.; Böhme, W.; Eidenmüller, B. & Philipp, K. 2001. A note on the coexistence of three species of Pacific monitor lizards in Australia (Sauria, Varanidae, Varanus indicus group). Bonn. Zool. Beitr. 50 (1-2): 27-30
- Ziegler, Thomas; Wolfgang Böhme, Andreas Schmitz 2007. A new species of the Varanus indicus group (Squamata, Varanidae) from Halmahera Island, Moluccas: morphological and molecular evidence. Mitteilungen aus dem Museum für Naturkunde in Berlin 83 (S1): 109-119
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Related categories
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Monitor lizards · Cretaceous lizards · Helodermas · Mosasaurs
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