Amazing diversity among indonesian monitor lizards

Written by Dr. H. P. Bustami

Friday, 02 November 2007

Andre Koch with a monitor lizard, Gorontalo, N Sulawesi. Courtesy: Evy Arida
A young german scientist, phd-student André Koch, from the Alexander-Koenig-Museum in Bonn, Germany and his indonesian collegues (Zoological Museum of Bogor, Java, Indonesia) discovered new species of monitor lizards. The islands of sulawesi are known for their diversity in animal species also applying to the family of monitor lizards. Koch captured and investigated morphologically and taxonomically specimens of the genus Varanus.

Although these big monitor lizard-species were not directly unknown among zoologists it was not known that obviously there are several subspecies which did not interbreed due to allopatric speciation. The findings are interesting because not only on those small isolated islands exist forms of different monitor lizards which do not interbreed but also on the main island of Sulawesi. The different forms and their areas they are covering also do not overlap.

In former times - when their where warm periods on earth - these areas seemed to have been separated by water what is now one big islands. Geographical separation plays the decisive role in allopatric speciation .

These new insights in the evolution and biology of the endangered monitor lizards might help to develop more detailed protection means. "Only what you know you are ready to protect in the right way" concludes the young scientist.

The data have been published in "Advances in monitor research".

Literatur:
Koch, A., M. Auliya, A. Schmitz, U. Kuch & W. Böhme (2007). Morphological Studies on the Systematics of South East Asian Water Monitors (Varanus salvator Complex): Nominotypic Populations and taxonomic Overview. In: Advances in Monitor Research III. H.-G. Horn, W. Böhme & U. Krebs (Eds.). Mertensiella, 16: 109-180

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