Ridgetail Monitor

About the Ridgetail Monitor

The spiny-tailed monitor (Varanus acanthurus), also known as the Australian spiny-tailed monitor, the ridge-tailed monitor the Ackie dwarf monitor, and colloquially simply ackie monitor, is an Australian species of lizard belonging to the genus of monitor lizards (Varanus).

The spiny-tailed monitor, a somewhat small monitor lizard, can attain a total length of up to 70 cm (27 in), although there are unconfirmed reports of wild individuals growing up to 34 inches. The tail is about 1.3-2.3 times as long as the head and body combined. The upper side is a rich, dark brown and painted with bright-yellowish to cream spots, which often enclose a few dark scales. Its tail is round in section and features very spinose scales. There are 70-115 scales around the middle of the body.

The spiny-tailed monitor is distinguished from the similar-looking species V. baritji and V. primordius by the presence of pale longitudinal stripes on the neck. This arid-adapted lizard is found in northern Western Australia, in the Northern Territory and in the western and north-western parts of Queensland. The spiny-tailed monitor is associated with arid rocky... Wikipedia →