Varanus keithhornei, commonly known as the canopy goanna, Keith Horne's monitor, blue-nosed tree monitor,[4] or Nesbit River monitor,[5] is a species of monitor lizards native to northeast Australia. It is a member of the Varanus prasinus species group.[6]
This monitor lizard is found in a restricted area of less than 100 km2 near the Claudie and Nesbit rivers, in the McIlwraith and Iron Ranges of the Cape York Peninsula in northern Queensland.[2][7][8]
The colouration of V. keithhornei is dark black on the upper side. It has moderately big and smooth head scales. Its tail has no visible keel.[6] The canopy goanna is small for a monitor lizard, reaching a total length up to 77 cm,[9] but more robust than other species of the V. prasinus species complex, and can be further distinguished from them by its colour and the conical throat scales.[8]
Specimens were originally assigned to the species Varanus prasinus by Czechura in 1980,[8] but Wells and Wellington declared it a new species 5 years later.
They forage in the trees and the leaf litter for insects such as orthopterans, roaches, and beetles.[8]
Varanus keithhornei, commonly known as the canopy goanna, Keith Horne's monitor, blue-nosed tree monitor, or Nesbit River monitor, is a species of monitor lizards native to northeast Australia. It is a member of the Varanus prasinus species group.
This monitor lizard is found in a restricted area of less than 100 km2 near the Claudie and Nesbit rivers, in the McIlwraith and Iron Ranges of the Cape York Peninsula in northern Queensland.