Behavior
The Argus Monitor is a versatile predator and inhabits a large variety of biomes and habitats. They are primarily terrestrial, meaning they spend a great deal of time on the ground. This species is an avid digger and will dig large burrows or take over an already existing one, where they spend a sizable portion of their time. Despite all this, they will eagerly forage in trees and in the water. These large lizards are quite fast and will run up to 100 yards/meters to the nearest tree or burrow when they are chased. The Argus Monitor is riparian in habits and as such, it can usually be found around a permanent source of water. The Argus will often "tripod" in captivity (animal) and in the wild, raising up on their hind legs and supporting themselves with the tail. This unusual behavior is used to spot potential prey or enemies from a distance or when they are threatened. They exhibit this behavior on a regular basis in captivity. This habit provides them a unique characteristic that separates them from most other monitors.
In Arnhem Land, they lay 6 to 13 eggs between January and February.
Its prey consists of almost anything that it can overpower. This includes fish, crabs, small birds, rodents, insects and even other monitors. The Argus Monitor frequently preys on the dwarf monitors that it shares its range with. Spiny-tailed goannas and rock monitors are eaten on a regular basis. Argus Monitors have great senses, with smell being the most acute. Like all monitors, the Argus has a forked tongue and a vomeronasal organ in the roof of its mouth. It uses this organ in the same manner as snakes do and can often be seen flicking their tongues in search of a meal.
With such a voracious appetite, the Argus Monitor makes for an interesting animal and is great for breeding programs. Argus Monitors will often attack one's hand if they have not been fed recently. They are often thought to be "bottomless pits" because they can fit amazing amounts of food in their stomachs.
Recent studies suggest that the Cane Toad infestation has severely damaged the population of Argus Monitors within the Top End. It is estimated that numbers have dropped by as much as 90% in many areas.
Read more about this topic: Argus Monitor
Famous quotes containing the word behavior:
“The abdication of Belief
Makes the Behavior small—
Better an ignis fatuus
Than no illume at all.”
—Emily Dickinson (1830–1886)
“The inability to control our children’s behavior feels the same as not being able to control it in ourselves. And the fact is that primitive behavior in children does unleash primitive behavior in mothers. That’s what frightens mothers most. For young children, even when out of control, do not have the power to destroy their mothers, but mothers who are out of control feel that they may destroy their children.”
—Elaine Heffner (20th century)
“The psychological umbilical cord is more difficult to cut than the real one. We experience our children as extensions of ourselves, and we feel as though their behavior is an expression of something within us...instead of an expression of something in them. We see in our children our own reflection, and when we don’t like what we see, we feel angry at the reflection.”
—Elaine Heffner (20th century)