Varanus hooijeri
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Varanus hooijeri Temporal range: Late Pleistocene-Holocene | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Suborder: | Anguimorpha |
| Family: | Varanidae |
| Genus: | Varanus |
| Species: | †V. hooijeri |
| Binomial name | |
| †Varanus hooijeri Brongersma, 1958 | |
Varanus hooijeri (also known as Flores Monitor) is an extinct species of a medium-sized monitor lizard, found in Liang Bua on Flores and possibly also Sumba in Indonesia, dating back to the Late Pleistocene and Holocene.
Description
Varanus hooijeri is a medium-sized varanid, at around 1.5 metres (4.9 ft) long,[3] around the size of a living Nile monitor.[4] The teeth of V. hooijeri are blunt and wide (or bunodont). Unlike the sharp, curved teeth typically seen in other monitor lizards,[2] this has been assessed as adapted for a frugivore diet, supplemented by small mammals and insects.[2]