The rock monitor (Varanus albigularis ) is a species of monitor lizard in the family Varanidae. The species is endemic to Central, East, and southern Africa. It is the second-longest lizard found on the continent, and the heaviest-bodied; locally, it is called leguaan or likkewaan.
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DiurnalDiurnal animals are active during the daytime, with a period of sleeping or other inactivity at night. The timing of activity by an animal depends ...
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CarnivoreA carnivore meaning 'meat eater' is an organism that derives its energy and nutrient requirements from a diet consisting mainly or exclusively of a...
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ScavengerScavengers are animals that consume dead organisms that have died from causes other than predation or have been killed by other predators. While sc...
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TerrestrialTerrestrial animals are animals that live predominantly or entirely on land (e.g., cats, ants, snails), as compared with aquatic animals, which liv...
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ArborealArboreal locomotion is the locomotion of animals in trees. In habitats in which trees are present, animals have evolved to move in them. Some anima...
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PredatorPredators are animals that kill and eat other organisms, their prey. Predators may actively search for or pursue prey or wait for it, often conceal...
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BurrowingA burrow is a hole or tunnel excavated into the ground by an animal to create a space suitable for habitation, temporary refuge, or as a byproduct ...
Oviparous animals are female animals that lay their eggs, with little or no other embryonic development within the mother. This is the reproductive...
Precocial species are those in which the young are relatively mature and mobile from the moment of birth or hatching. Precocial species are normall...
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SolitaryNo
Not a migrantAnimals that do not make seasonal movements and stay in their native home ranges all year round are called not migrants or residents.
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starts withThe Rock monitor is a large heavy-bodied lizard native to Africa. Its head and neck are the same length and are distinct from each other. The bulbous, convex snout gives an angular, box-like appearance. The forked tongue is pink or bluish, and the body scales are usually a mottled gray-brown with yellowish or white markings.
Rock monitors are found in Central Africa, Southern Africa, the African Great Lakes, and the Horn of Africa. They live in a variety of dry habitats, including steppes, prairies, and savannahs, but are absent from desert interiors, rainforests, and thick scrub forests.
Rock monitors lead a solitary life and live in tunnels which they dig themselves or in burrows abandoned by other animals. They may also take shelter in tree holes or rock crevices. Rock monitors feed by day on a broad variety of prey and are not averse to occasionally scavenge the corpses of vertebrates, even those as large as vervet monkeys; these are sometimes torn to pieces by "death rolling" prior to consumption.
Rock monitors are carnivores and scavengers. They eat primarily invertebrates, especially millipedes, beetles, mollusks, and orthopterans. Tortoises also make up a significant part of their diet and are swallowed whole due to the hard shell.
Rock monitors breed between October and November and females lay 8-50 eggs in a hole they dig in moist soil or in a hollow tree.
These large lizards suffer from habitat destruction and from hunting for their skin, meat and are frequently used in traditional medicines by local people.
Presently, the Rock monitor is not included in the IUCN Red List and its conservation status has not been evaluated.