# Varanus sp. "Black Dragon"



## BoomerSub (Jun 23, 2003)

http://market.kingsnake.com/detail.php?cat=53&de=266028

New _salvator_ subspecies?

-PK


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## WolfFish (Jun 30, 2004)

It seems strange that they are selling them if they are rare. Really cool lizard though, they look lke komodos so i'm guessing they get huge.


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## Bawb2u (May 27, 2004)

Looks like a big rudicollis, probably an island specific type. Doesn't look like salvator to me at all. NERD has het albino waters becoming available in the not too distant future,some are being kept to try for true albinos.Designer water monitors, huh.


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## BoomerSub (Jun 23, 2003)

Bawb2u said:


> Looks like a big rudicollis, probably an island specific type.


 I don't think so, the back of the neck is wrong.

"Black Dragon"

_V.rudicollis_

On the rudi, the enlarged neck scales start roughly two-thirds of the way up the 
side of the neck. Compare that to the BD, whose scales appear only slightly larger than normal, and even then only the very top rows are affected.

I agree, it doesn't look like a _salvator_. I've never seen anything like this before.

-PK


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## Bawb2u (May 27, 2004)

BoomerSub said:


> Bawb2u said:
> 
> 
> > Looks like a big rudicollis, probably an island specific type.
> ...


You're right, I only looked at the first picture. I saw some of these a few years back listed as Togian water monitors. The threat pose on the first picture looked exactly like my big male rudi when he got pissed, that's what threw me.
Here's one of the "togos"
http://www.herpafauna.com/pics/monitors/togian.jpg


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## acestro (Jul 7, 2003)

Wait, I'm lost, what's a togo?


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## BoomerSub (Jun 23, 2003)

acestro said:


> Wait, I'm lost, what's a togo?


 _Varanus salvator togianus_, the Togian Water Monitor. There's some more pictures here.

I don't think it's a Togian either. Togs have the yellow marks on the throat, the BD doesn't. The head is also shaped differently, look at it from the side.

-PK


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## Bawb2u (May 27, 2004)

There are mutiple localities of very dark salvators, Togian was used as a catch-all for a few years. I found this searching k-com.

"there are more than one locality of black waters. some are black versions of existing subspecies such as all black nuchalis on ticao, all black versions of salvtor on krakatao, phuket, lingga, etc. some localitys are known to be all black, some localitys black above yellow or white or grey below. some black waters are born black, some transform for reasons unknown into the blackest versions. those can be born very normally patterned."

To determine whether or not these are a new monitor or a valid subspecies would take multiple dissections and study, which at 5k a pop wouldn't seem likely to happen, so they can pretty much call it anything they want but I know I wouldn't pay it for what's probably just a locality difference.

It's hard to tell with the diferent positions of the head and the distended throat on the link you posted but they look pretty similar to me, barring coloration.


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## CrocKeeper (Dec 26, 2003)

Definately a salvator.

Caveat emptor..........many of the new died mulches will produce a "black" monitor that will eventually shed out into its beautiful self...although there are as correctly stated out earlier many locality types that are melanistic.


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## Death in #'s (Apr 29, 2003)

dam that big boy is totally badass


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