King's Rock Monitors

[Simon_Archibald]

Hi all,
Today I received my 4 Kings / Long-tailed Rock Monitors (Varanus kingorum) from NT breeder Grant Husband. These are beautiful little monitors and absolutely entertaining. I'll try and get some pics up soon.

For anyone getting into monitors (especially people who might not have space for the larger goannas), I really recommend these animals. Also, Grant was fantastic about our transaction and I highly recommend him to anyone.

I also have a question. In the NSW NPWS holdings for 2003, there was no NSW licence holders who currently owned any of the V. kingorum. Just wondering if any NSW keepers know of anyone who has purchased them since the holdings list was compiled, or am I the only lucky one?

Simon Archibald

 

[earthmother]

Congrats Simon! :mrgreen:

We saw some baby monitors a couple of weeks ago and they were entertaining from 1st sight, inquisitive little things.

I've never heard of Kings, tell us more. How large do they grow, what do you have to feed them?
Pics will be great.
Em

 

[Ricko]

hey simon as a matter of interest were they really expensive?? also are they hatchy's or adults?

 

[Simon_Archibald]

Hi guys,
EM, they only grow to around 33cm total length (according to Steve Wilson / Gerry Swan's "A Complete Guide to Reptiles of Australia"). The feed on crickets, roaches, other small insects and the like. Need to be kept hot like a lot of monitors and they are very active. They have a VERY long tail which is just awesome. If you've been lucky enough to see the lovely Varanus brevicauda display at Taronga Zoo, they are a little similar but slightly bigger and a longer tail from what I can remember.

Ricko, these monitors were $500 each. As far as I'm concerned they are easily worth $600-$700 each.

Simon Archibald

 

[Simon_Archibald]

Oh yeah, they're 3 months old.

Simon Archibald

 

[Ricko]

good price i reckon as i have seen them for sale at $800ea so good buy mate. are they adults? cant wait to see pics mate.

 

[Fuscus]

This page http://www.monitor-lizards.net/species/odatria/kingorum.html has a so-so photo of the species

 

[Ricko]

like the albino looking one.

 

[soulweaver]

when are we going to see pictures?
do you know what sex they are?

 

[Simon_Archibald]

I'll put pics up as soon as I can borrow a camera - they are unsexed at this stage.

Simon Archibald

 

[Guest]

I also have a pair of these awesome goanna's. Mine are several months old. Grant Husband is a top bloke and I also highly recommend him. Congrats on your new purchases Simon...enjoy them!

 

[Guest]

sounds like they breed like rabbits :twisted: could turn out to b a good investment!!!

 

[Guest]

Yes, they are considered one of the easiest species to breed in captivity. They are sexually mature at around 6 months of age@!!...so here is hoping. I have one male and one female. Active little bastards eh simon?????

 

[Simon_Archibald]

Brodes,
They were very active yesterday, but barely seen them out today - probably won't see them for a few more days now. They are really great looking monitors and I really hope they breed well.

Simon Archibald

 

[NoOne]

Get in and breed as many as you can because if they breed easily the price will drop so fast it's not funny, it's happened with just about every other small moniter thats now common, ackies, gilleni,tristis.

 

[Simon_Archibald]

NoOne - I totally agree with you about the prices. They will drop very quickly but hopefully that's a semi-good thing. I'm really in 2 minds about reptile pricing. Firstly, high prices for some species are good because the rarer / harder to care for species usually have higher price tags and that's good to prevent impulsive people buying them. On the other hand, rich(er) people with less experience than dedicated keepers who don't have the money are able to buy these rarer species without the experience of other people who've "done the time" but can't afford to spend thousands on animals.

Then you have the people who are in the hobby to make a living and what happens to those people when the prices drop ridiculously low?

Take something like the Eastern Water Dragon or Central Bearded Dragon. When I first started investigating reptiles in 2002, I was expecting to pay $60-$80 for a hatchling Water Dragon. Now you get them for $30 and cheaper on most occasions if you buy bulk. I don't think that's a real good thing. Although it's obviously because they breed readily, etc - I think at this price too many people will buy them and keep them indoors most of their lives because they don't have outdoor pits or the like.........what a ramble, eh?

Simon Archibald

 

[NoOne]

Thats why i got out of moniters, you couldn't sell the hatchlings, they just lay to many eggs every year and the market gets flooded, pythons only have one clutch a year so it takes alot longer.

Nearly always "rich" people won't be in it for long, they buy the most expensive things they can get their hands on and sell them all a few years later when they get sick of them, people like this will also buy the first speciman they can get their hands on and not look around for the nicer ones.

I always say you only live once, i'm not rich but i buy some expensive reptiles but i make alot of sacrifices to afford them.

 

[Simon_Archibald]

I think it just depends on the monitors you've got. Bells phase Lacies are popular and $1000 - $1200 per lizard is not bad at all. Also, I think the Class 1 / Class 2 licence system in NSW is a tidy little "loop hole" for monitor breeders. You have all these people on Class 1 who can potentially fall in love with the Class 2 monitors but can't get them. Every year, breeder's have another group of people getting their Class 2 and going out to buy their favourite Class 2 species. This happens year round as people apply for Class 2 at different times of the year.

Just what I think may happen anyways. Also, V. tristis, V. gilleni and V. acanthurus that you mentioned are all Class 1 species in NSW - meaning everyone can get them who wants them. IMO.

Simon Archibald

 

[Guest]

I think that anyone who keeps any reptile because it is worth a lot of money is a complete wanka, and maybe they should be selectively breeding guinea pigs or something.... I love all monitors and I think they are the most awesome lizards ever. Who really cares if in 3 years they will be worth $200 or $2000, I keep them because I like them...... simple as that.

 

[NoOne]

I agree brodie, i love moniters but when you can't sell them they start to take up alot of room and time, i fully intend on getting back into moniters when i have more space and time. I sold almost all my lizards because i didn't have the time to give them the care they needed, now i just keep frillies and centralian blue tongues.

Most moniters were orignally on the old class 3, as soon as they were off was when they boomed. I can see alot more small moniters being put on the class one license when they review it again.
I remember when hatchling ackies were worth $500ea and tristis $800ea.