 |
|
|---|---|
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Family: | Varanidae |
| Genus: | Varanus |
| Subgenus: | Soterosaurus |
| Species: |
V. salvator
|
| Binomial name | |
| Varanus salvator
(Laurenti, 1768)
|
|
The Asian water monitor (Varanus salvator) is a large varanid lizard native to South and Southeast Asia. It is one of the most common monitor lizards in Asia, ranging from coastal northeast India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, mainland Southeast Asia, and southern China to Indonesian islands where it lives close to water. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.[1] It was described by Laurenti in 1768 and is among the largest squamates in the world.[2]
Etymology
The generic name Varanus is derived from the Arabic waral (???), which translates as "monitor". The specific name is the Latin word for "saviour", denoting a possible religious connotation.[3] The water monitor is occasionally confused with the crocodile monitor (V. salvadorii) because of their similar scientific names.[4]
Some common names for the species are Malayan water monitor, common water monitor, two-banded monitor, rice lizard, ring lizard, plain lizard, no-mark lizard and water monitor etc.
