Monitor lizard

The Nile River watershed is home to three species of monitor lizards. They are among Africa's biggest lizards, with some reaching 1.8 meters (6 feet) in length when fully mature. Long necks, muscular tails and claws, and well-developed limbs characterize monitor lizards. Adult lengths of extant species range from 20 cm (7.9 in) in certain species to over 3 m (10 ft) in the case of the Komodo dragon, however the extinct varanid megalania (Varanus priscus) may have reached lengths of more than 7 m (23 ft).

The majority of monitor species are terrestrial, however arboreal and semi-aquatic monitors exist. While most monitor lizards are carnivorous, eating eggs, smaller reptiles, fish, birds, insects, and small mammals, depending on where they reside, some also consume fruit and flora.