Blue-spotted tree monitor

Varanus macraei

Range

Endemic to Batanta Island in the Raja Ampat Islands of Papua, Indonesia; some assessments also include associated small offshore islets.

Habitat

Diurnal and arboreal in low-lying humid forest.

Diet

Primarily feeds on invertebrates.

Facts

• Sharp claws help this monitor grip surfaces, and its long prehensile tail can grasp branches—useful equipment for life in the trees.
• It is active during the day and lives in humid lowland forest, where it spends its life in an arboreal setting.
• Females lay eggs in clutches reported to contain 2–7 eggs, and may produce up to four clutches in a year. In one captive observation, fertile eggs hatched after approximately 23 weeks.

Research sources

• GBIF Backbone Taxonomy
• Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Endangered Species Status for the Blue Tree Monitor