Varanus salvadorii
| Varanus salvadorii | |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Subphylum: | Vertebrata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Suborder: | Lacertilia |
| Family: | Varanidae |
| Genus: | Varanus |
| Subgenus: | (Papusaurus) |
| Species: | V. salvadorii |
| Binomial name | |
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Varanus salvadorii (W. Peters & Doria, 1878) |
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| Estimated range of V. salvadorii, indicated by green | |
| Synonyms | |
Varanus salvadorii is a species of monitor lizard, which is endemic to New Guinea. It is also known by the common names crocodile monitor, Papua(n) monitor, Salvadori's monitor and artellia. The largest monitor lizard in New Guinea, it is believed to be one of the longest lizards in the world, verified at up to 244 cm (8 ft), and in rare cases it may rival or exceed the length of the world's largest lizard, the Komodo dragon. It is the sole member of the subgenus Papusaurus. V. salvadorii is an arboreal lizard with a dark green body and yellowish bands, a blunt snout and a very long tail. It lives in mangrove swamps and coastal rainforests in the southeastern part of the island, where it feeds on birds, small mammals, eggs, and carrion in the wild, using teeth better adapted than those of most monitors for seizing fast-moving prey. Like all monitors, it has anatomical features that enable it to breathe more easily when running than other lizards can, and V. salvadorii may have greater stamina than most monitors. Little is known of its reproduction and development, as the species is very difficult to breed in captivity.
V. salvadorii is threatened by deforestation and poaching, and is protected by the CITES agreement. The lizard is hunted and skinned alive by tribesmen to make drums, who describe the monitor as an evil spirit that "climbs trees, walks upright, breathes fire, and kills men"; yet the tribesmen maintain that the monitor gives warnings if there are crocodiles nearby.
V. salvadorii was first described as Monitor salvadorii by Wilhelm Peters and Giacomo Doria in 1878 from a female specimen with a snout-to-vent length of 48 cm (19 in), and a tail measuring 114 cm (45 in) in length.
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