Scared the living sh*t outa me, but kinda funny

[Kyle Barker]

A few days ago i was looking in my peach throat cage and could not find him. I took out everything dug up the dirt in the bottom...nothing. We tore apart the whole garage every day, making a huge mess (very stressful i might add). No where to be found. I figured it had gotten outside and was finished. So about 4 days after i decided to put my savannah in its cage because it was bigger, and i thought he would be happier (he really used that cage!). Any today (about 3 days after the sav went in) i look in to see both peachy and sav basking (on top of each other!) on the log. They were so peaceful, and didn't SEEM to care less about each other. Anyway i found out where he was hiding. There is a hollow in the log that i put plants in and crammed rocks/dirt in to hole them there. It had burrowed juts inside the lip and right to the back of the plant (about 1' down the log), kind of cool as i found him there 3 times since. Anyway thought id share, but man was i freaking out! :D

Steeve see how your suggesting a tree hollow worked out, jeesh. But hey he really loves to use it now.

[V.hb]

Sometimes monitors are too good at not being seen huh?? haha.. glad you found him.

[mbayless]

V. jobiensis live in tree hollows in PNG/Irian Jaya/Sepic River region, and in groups, living together, and also with V. salvadorii.
Apparently, all of them are a happy semi-social group. Why they do this beats me, but the only field study done reported this in 1999. Amazing isn't it. A fellow Varanophile S. Ford has V. dumerilii who disappeared and he thought they were lost, to discover the babies and adults burrow in his potted indoor plants a foot deep, leaving a small air hole to respire, and was asleep in these burrows - I guess they used their tail to make the air holes to the surface?? I sure would have liked to see how they do that?
Cheers,
markb

[Kyle Barker]

WAY to good...

So, if its known, do they have family groups (say liek a monkey tail skink)? Did they happen to see the sexes, maybe have a dominant male harem type setup??? Sounds very interesting!!!

That dumerilii thing is too bizare. To me thats what make monitors so interesting (plus they look smarter then me).

I also found soem pics on google of a "sunset"? peach throat from Irian Jaya? Any comments?

[Steeve B]

Thats a good one! glad all is ok. when or if you ever get eggs dont forget the logs!
Rgds

[Kyle Barker]

Actually the only reason i put it in was because you had mentioned that before :) I didnt think it could have busted through the latches on the lid, but at the time i didnt know what to think! Anyway, im going out tomarow to pick up some more tree hollows seen as they like them so much. I guess there is ONE good reason to live by a clear cut...