The National Geographic channel on satelite TV is always advertising a documentary on the kookaburras, but they never actually show it.  In the few images of the ad they show a monitor lizard trying to attack their nests.  Can anyone tell me the name and scientific name of this lizard?  It must be Varanus something.

Another thing I saw in the same channel was about a monitor called Thunder dragon, in Sentinel island, which is part of Sri Lanka.  But Bhutan is known as the Thunder Dragon country.  Is it the same animal?  How can a lizard live in such a cold place?  And what is the scientific name of this lizard?

The National Geographic channel on satelite TV is always advertising a documentary on the kookaburras, but they never actually show it.  In the few images of the ad they show a monitor lizard trying to attack their nests.  Can anyone tell me the name and scientific name of this lizard?  It must be Varanus something.

OED goves Varanus as genus, but notes that there are many species.  A quick search turned up Varanus Acanthurus as one of the Australian species.

Another thing I saw in the same channel was about a monitor called Thunder dragon, in Sentinel island, which is part of Sri Lanka.  But Bhutan is known as the Thunder Dragon country.  Is it the same animal?  How can a lizard live in such a cold place?  And what is the scientific name of this lizard?

Sorry, can’t help you with the thunder dragon; a web search wasn’t particularly helpful.  

Lizards can live in cold places.  We have many varieties here in New Zealand and, as any New Zealander can tell you, it is rather cold here in winter (sometimes in summer, too…)

OED goves Varanus as genus, but notes that there are many species. A quick search turned up Varanus Acanthurus as one of the Australian species.

Where did you find that? And what species of Varanus do you have in Australia?

Lizards can live in cold places. We have many varieties here in New Zealand and, as any New Zealander can tell you, it is rather cold here in winter (sometimes in summer, too…)

Yes, but surely not as cold as the winters of Bhutan.  Besides, how can the same lizard live in places with such diverse temperatures as Bhutan and Sri Lanka?

OED goves Varanus as genus, but notes that there are many species. A quick search turned up Varanus Acanthurus as one of the Australian species.

Where did you find that? And what species of Varanus do you have in Australia?

For the OED contribution, I looked up monitor.  For the species I did a web search.  I think the Varanus Acanthurus is a northwestern ridge-tailed monitor from Australia.

I’m not sure what other species Australia might have.  (Contrary to popular world opinion, New Zealand is not a territory of Australia.  ;D)

In New Zealand we have quite a special little fellow called a tuatara.  I’m not sure if it is actually a lizard, but you can check it out at:

http://www.bigjude.com/Tuatara.html

Lizards can live in cold places. We have many varieties here in New Zealand and, as any New Zealander can tell you, it is rather cold here in winter (sometimes in summer, too…)

Yes, but surely not as cold as the winters of Bhutan.  Besides, how can the same lizard live in places with such diverse temperatures as Bhutan and Sri Lanka?

In Christchurch, where I live, summer temperatures can reach the mid- or high-30s celsius.   Night-time temperatures during winter can be -10 celsius, or even lower.  Some places in New Zealand are warmer than Christchurch, some are colder and some have a greater spread of temperature.

Lizards also live in Northern Europe; I’ve never heard anyone complain that the UK is too warm.

I think that lizards, like most other creatures, adapt to the environment in which they live.  Therefore they can live in places like New Zealand, Australia, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, or where ever else they happen to live.  However, I refer to the whole greater family of lizards, and it may be that a species of lizard that lives in a tropical country could not survive in a colder climate if suddenly transported there.

I wonder if this could be useful:

http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/chordata/reptilia/squamata/varanidae.html

I was directed to this link by a posting elsewhere on the Agora.

May I suggest that the Bhutan Thunder Dragon is nothing but a Red Herring?
I haven’t turned up any evidence, but from cultural context I’d bet this particular "lizard" is of mythological origin.

On the Australian front, there are twenty native Australian monitor lizards, of varying sizes, known locally as goannas.

Grant

[quote author=granthutchison link=board=etymology;num=1030835910;start=0#5 date=09/01/02 at 10:23:30]On the Australian front, there are twenty native Australian monitor lizards, of varying sizes, known locally as goannas.

Ah-ha! I spy the makings of a raffish tongue-twister.

Something along the lines of:

"How much guano can a goanna . . . "

Anybody care to complete?

Antonio:
Here is a discussion of the lizards of Bhutan:
http://www.pbs.org/edens/bhutan/a_reptiles.htm
They’re there, but they’re small - nothing that seems a likely candidate to be a real Thunder Dragon.

Grant

I wonder if this could be useful:

http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/chordata/reptilia/squamata/varanidae.html

I was directed to this link by a posting elsewhere on the Agora.

Yes, it was most useful.  Thanks!

Contrary to popular world opinion, New Zealand is not a territory of Australia.  
Everybody knows that!  We’re not stupid, you know?

In New Zealand we have quite a special little fellow called a tuatara.  I’m not sure if it is actually a lizard.
No, it is not a lizard.  Lizards and snakes belong to the order Squamata (a total of about 5,500 species), and the tuatara is the only species of the order Rhynchocephalia.  Unfortunately it is on the verge of extinction.

Antonio:
I couldn’t find a Sentinel Island listed in the GeoNet name server for Sri Lanka.
But the place you’re talking about is one of the Sentinel Islands in the Andaman Islands chain, which is part of India. In the Andamans they have a large common water monitor Varanus salvator. These were the topic of the National Geographic "Thunder Dragons" programme.

Grant

My mother was in Australia a couple of years ago.  She tried to go to NZ but they said she should ave obtained a visa in her own country.  Unfortunately there is no NZ High Commission here.  Since she is going to Australia again next year, she will try again.  I wonder if she could contact you.