all along i had thought that the monitor lizards that i have encountered during my nature walks actually belonged to the same species. i have come across monitor lizards, usually of a smaller size, during my walks at forested areas and the larger ones are usually found in the water or near the water edge at mangrove swamps or water bodies.
i only realise that there are two common types of monitor lizards - the water monitor lizard and the clouded monitor lizard - when i saw an information board, similar to this, at the lower peirce reservoir boardwalk.
the two species of monitor lizard are similar in appearance. those found in forested area, away from the water, have yellow spots on a brown-grey base. they are usually smaller in size. the one distinguishing difference is that the nostrils of the clouded lizard lie midway between the eye and the snout; whereas, in the case of the water monitor lizard, the nostrils lie near the tip of the snout.
incidentally, while searching for more information on the two species, i came across this very informative nature blog with very good pictures.
1 comment:
The water monitor lizard is quite a common sight. I have seen them near the canals of Spore. One near my house, another time at Kallang River behind the MOELC at Bishan and just the other day at Sungei Ulu Pandan near the railway bridge that I blogged about. I took some photos with my camera phone but did not turn up well.
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