Monitors & Tegus

Monitor lizards are considered to be the most highly developed lizards, possessing a relatively rapid metabolism for reptiles, several sensory adaptations that benefit the hunting of live prey, and a lower jaw that may be unhinged to facilitate eating large prey animals. Recent work indicates that the Varanid lizards, including the Komodo dragon, produce venom. These latter two adaptations are shared with snakes, which are thought to have evolved from a sister group to the Varanidae as part of a larger venom clade. However, the venom in monitor lizards accumulates around the base of the teeth, and is not injected through hollows in the teeth as in venomous snakes.

Tupinambis is a lizard genus which belongs to the family of Teiidae. These large, South American lizards are commonly referred to as tegus; Tupinambis merianae (Argentine Black and White Tegu), Tupinambis rufescens (Red Tegu), and Tupinambis teguixin (Colombian Black and White Tegu) are all common in the pet trade.