The Nile Monitor is Africas's Largest Lizard

by Ermiyas Abiy, age 8

The Nile monitor is one of the strongest and most formidable predators of the lizard species. These creatures are the largest lizards in Africa, reaching up to six feet long!

This creature features knife-like claws used for climbing, digging, and capturing prey. The head of a Nile monitor is shaped like a triangle and built with thick bones. It also has a lower jaw with a powerful bite, preying on birds, and small mammals. The feet of a monitor are for gripping which lets them climb on their prey’s back, break them, and then eat them.

These animals mostly bury their eggs somewhere warm near sandy river banks.

Monitors are now egg egg-thieves, raiding nests of large reptiles like crocodiles. After a female monitor buries her eggs, she can sneak up quietly and snatch crocodile eggs before quickly hiding to feast on her new meal.

Most Nile monitor species live somewhere damp or someplace where there’s water in Africa. They live in regions across the African continent except for the intensely dry climates of northern Africa. Some common regions are the sub-Sahara and Eastern Africa. They prefer rivers, swamps, lakes, or any location with a permanent water source. As a result, most of their prey are aquatic species or animals that reside in this type of habitat.

The Nile monitor is a very interesting animal with very fascinating characteristics. The Nile monitor is one of the strongest and greatest animals of all time.

[Source: Snakes and Reptiles; Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission]