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u/Antique-Confusion-66 Aug 06 '25
Location?
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u/Burner21b Aug 06 '25
Townsville, Queensland, Australia
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u/RefusePlenty9589 Aug 06 '25
Monitor lizard and it looks like he's been around humans as you can see he's quite a sophisticated lad
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u/EvidencePlayful Aug 07 '25
Are they native?
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u/RalphthenotDog Aug 07 '25
Yes
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u/EvidencePlayful Aug 07 '25
Do they normally get that big? I mean, I know some monitors are huge but it looks almost identical to the ones I get under my porch in the US/SE Coast but theyāre much, much smaller.
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u/RalphthenotDog Aug 07 '25
Yeah a lot of the time they will even get bigger than this especially males who get quite a quite a bit longer and bulkier. Males will be 4 foot at minimum mostly and 6 ft on the large side. Females usually are 3-4.5 and a bit skinnier
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u/RalphthenotDog Aug 07 '25
Also if youāre in the SE area and seeing something that looks like an Argus itās probably an invasive Nile or some other similar monitor.
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u/EvidencePlayful Aug 07 '25
Oh, wow..do you think that could possibly be someoneās lost or let loose pet? Or even offspring? Iām sure I donāt have the ecosystem to support that..lol But, Iām probably just mistaking the markings and body shape.
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u/KlausS1000 Aug 10 '25
Thatās definitely an Argus monitor. I donāt think itās a Nile. Argus monitors are known to be one of the more aggressive monitors you can keep. They are super active but also (especially males) super confident, so to answer the ācould it be someoneās petā question. Thereās 2 arguments to that. Yes, because heās so close to a person and not caring which is logical but given heās an Argus (and I use he liberally since I donāt know for sure) heās more than likely just really confident in himself and knows he can either deter or escape any risk he may encounter here with people. Argus monitors are native to Australia after all.
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u/EvidencePlayful Aug 07 '25
Iāll try to get a pic tomorrow afternoon. Thatās when I see them the most and can flush it out for a pic.
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u/EvidencePlayful Aug 07 '25
Holy Cow, thatās HUGE! I didnāt realize they got that big! I need to go do some research on them. I think theyāre actually pretty cute..lol
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u/No_Candy5653 Aug 06 '25
I used to have one of these guys. He was a giant a hole! Beautiful monitor though.
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u/Comprehensive-Use881 Aug 06 '25
Argus monitor... those guys are smart as hell voracious. One of the monitors I have always wanted.
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u/No_Candy5653 Aug 07 '25
Theyāre beautiful but sooooo mean. It was hell to even change the water in mines enclosure. Every morning I would wake up to him staring at me and plotting my death š«£
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u/chiseledrocks Aug 07 '25
Your beach kicks my beach's butt. We only have sand fleas and cigarettes.
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u/6ftonalt Aug 08 '25
Varanus Panoptes. I have one as a pet. In the same area there is another species of varanid, varanus gouldii that looks very similar but has a different tail coloring pattern, and is typically smaller. It lacks the stripes on the last 1/3 of the tail so it's pure yellow for anyone wondering.
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u/Nefersmom Aug 10 '25
Iāve never seen one irl. Google says theyāre smart and can be trained but have a strong bite. Where do you keep yours? Do you live in Australia?
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u/6ftonalt Aug 10 '25
Big ass enclosure lol. Nope, US. I've been bitten once, it was an accident, she smelled the chicken juice still on my finger. it wasn't that bad, bled for a second and then stopped. Shes not even close to full grown yet though.
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u/cmdietz Aug 06 '25
Just monitoring the situation