Greenwire: Scientists have confirmed that a large fruit-eating lizard in the northern Philippines island of Luzon is a new species. The tree-dwelling forest monitor lizard is noted for its ability to hide from humans, its main predators, explaining why it has gone undetected for so long.
The lizard can grow more than 6 feet in length, but weighs about 22 pounds. It is hunted for its flesh, which can be eaten. Scientists from the University of Kansas say it is only the third known fruit-eating lizard species.
Discovering a new, large vertebrate is rare. Photographs of the brightly colored lizard first starting appearing in 2001, and there was no scientific identification for it. Stories of the lizard spread over the next few years until graduate students on a 2009 expedition gathering evidence managed to catch an adult male.
Tests confirmed it was a new species and that there was a great genetic difference between the new lizard and the Gray’s monitor lizard, the closest relative. The findings were published in the Royal Society journal Biology Letters (Deborah Zabarenko, Reuters, April 7). – JP