My reptile hunt in NT

[Slateman]

I captured this photo when herping in northern teritory close to Darwin.

 

[Guest]

Cool slatey!
did you manage to identify it??
They are pretty common at TWP, and we have one in the monitor pit @ reptiles

 

[hugsta]

Excellent slatey, It's unreal to see big monitors in the wild. I've seen a couple of lace monitors on bush walks and they're just awesome.

 

[NoOne]

looks like a panoptes?????

 

[Guest]

SHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
you wrecked it

 

[NoOne]

 

[Slateman]

LOL I have no idea what type of monitor that is as I am not in lizards at all. And this one was so nice to me and did not run away.

 

[Guest]

Varanus panoptes - yellow spotted monitor

 

[Simon_Archibald]

From all the pictures I have, that would have to be the best looking V. panoptes I've ever seen.

Simon Archibald

 

[Fuscus]

Varanus panoptes - yellow spotted monitor

Thanks. I would have guessed wrong and said it was a very large [/i] V.gouldii[/i]

 

[NoOne]

lot less spots

 

[Guest]

The way I tell the difference to be 100 percent sure, is that panoptes up here have a banded tail, whilst gouldi dont. Goulds do in sydney though...
you cant see the tail in this photo tho, so I figured it out by the spots on the neck!

 

[Slateman]

From the front

 

[Fuscus]

Here is a V.gouldi from SA.. With the to photos together you can see a lot of differences. However V.gouldi are a widespread species with lots of variation.

 

[Guest]

Yeah my rellies own cattle properties out from charters towers near Townsville and they have loads of monitors like that running around. infact last time i was up there we were moving all piles of tubing and my lil 8 yr old cousin call out to his dad, "SNAKE" so my uncle ran over and put his boot through its head. i went over and looked at it and u'll neva guess what he killed...it was a tiny BHP. about 30 cm or so. i was sorry 4 the loss. but to my uncles defence, they have HEAPS of browns etc around and with little kids he doesn't want to risk them getting hurt. sad story sorry.
pete

 

[Sdaji]

I saw heaps of panoptes in Kakadu a few years ago, really friendly and wonderful to see. I've been wondering how they're getting on with their new toady companions.

 

[Sdaji]

...it was a tiny BHP. about 30 cm or so

Are you sure it was a BHP? They usually hatch out much larger, do you think it was a little runt or could it have been something else? Sometimes browns hatch out with black heads and stripes.

 

[Guest]

spose its possible. hadn't given it all that much thought ay. i m prety sure it was about 30. possibly up to 45, but no bigger then that. u think its a brown?

 

[Tommo]

in the other days paper it talked about australias equivalent to cock fighting which is goanna fighting. its sick stuff, the poor lizards are blinded and thrown in a pit to fight to the death .

 

[Fuscus]

I saw heaps of panoptes in Kakadu a few years ago, really friendly and wonderful to see. I've been wondering how they're getting on with their new toady companions.

I posted an article a while back claiming a 75% loss. Same with the Goulds as well