Savannah monitors are members of the Varanus genus in the Varanidae family. There
are several extinct genera in the family, but the Varanus genus is the only one that
contains living species.
The genus name’s origin is an Arabic word that means lizard beast. Their species
name, exanthematicus, is Greek and translates to eruption or blister of the skin – it
refers to the large oval scales on the back of the monitor’s neck that resemble blisters.
Savannah monitors are found throughout sub-Saharan Africa from Senegal east to
Sudan and south almost to the Congo River and Rift Valley. They live in savannah or
grassland areas, but may also be found in rocky, semi-desert habitats, open forest, and
woodlands.
Savannah monitors are primarily ground-dwelling creatures that shelter in burrows,
although they are sometimes found in bushes or low trees.
Considered medium sized for a monitor species, they are very strong with powerful
arms for digging and climbing, a strong tail for defense, and powerful jaws with blunt
peg-like teeth for crushing prey. They can grow to 4+ feet in length and live up to 13
years.
Savannah monitors are active during the day.
They are meat eaters and use a feast and fast system which depends on the weather.
They feast during the wet season when food is plentiful but during the dry season, they
survive off the fat reserves they built up during the wet season.
The diet of Savannah monitors includes beetles, scorpions, snakes, snails, millipedes, small mammals, birds, lizards, and eggs. The monitor plays a very important role in its ecosystem because they are one of the only large land carnivores in their habitat.
They will aggressively defend their territories when they feel threatened. Savannah monitors will hiss loudly and strike the ground with their tail to ward off predators. If that doesn’t work, they will play dead. They are hunted for food and their skins are made into leather.
Little is known about the mating system in Savannah monitors. Their breeding season
occurs during the wet season. Four weeks after mating females lay 10 to 50 eggs in a
nest she builds or in a termite mound. The incubation period lasts around 5-6 months.
Hatchlings are independent at birth and become reproductively mature when they are
1.5-2 years old.