“Limeone” Our Emerald Green Tree Monitor (Varanus Reisingeri)

Limeone is about five years old and is a friendly tree monitor once he is out of his enclosure and has time to chill out. The handler needs to be careful of the sharp claws and will often wear gloves to prevent getting scratched. Tree monitors are arboreal and live high up in the trees and rely on their sharp claws for upward movement. They are also the only monitor species with a prehensile tail which allows them to use there tail to balance and hold onto tree branches like an additional arm.

Green tree monitors are known for their beautiful colors which include a lime green, turquoise and black accent colors. These forest-like colors help this species to camouflage in the jungle to avoid predators and stay hidden from food prospects. These monitors grow to about three feet and have long slender bodies. They live in small groups usually with one dominant male and several females and juveniles. Lifespan is about 10+ years, longer in captivity since not subject to fall prey to animals higher up on the food chain.

This species in mostly found in Asia within the counties of Indonesia and New Guinea. Since they come from a tropical climate. They need a basking area and a cooler section within their enclosure so they can regulate their body temperature. UVA for heat and UVB to compensate for sunlight must be used to maintain this animal successfully in captivity. An 80 percent humidity level must also be maintained to keep this animal successfully. They eat mostly a variety of insects, fish, small eggs and rodents.