Diet
The emerald tree monitor's diet consists of large tree dwelling insects such as katydids, stick insects, cockroaches, beetles, centipedes, spiders, crabs, birds, and small mammals. Before swallowing stick insects, the lizards tear off the legs. Captive specimens tear off the limbs of rodents prior to eating them and as a result they are capable of swallowing mammals of a considerable size: A 135-gram (4.8 oz) lizard was documented as eating a 40-gram (1.4 oz) rodent, an animal almost one-third its size. Paleontologist and Biology Professor at Temple University, Michael Balsai has observed V. prasinus eating fruit(bananas) in captivity as has herpetologist and author, Robert G. Sprackland.
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