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Spatial ecology of a large carnivorous lizard, Varanus varius (Squamata: Varanidae)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 November 2002

Fiorenzo Guarino
Fiorenzo Guarino
Affiliation:
Applied Ecology Research Group, University of Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia
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Abstract

The spatial resources used by a population of lace monitors (Varanus varius) were examined over an active season (September–April) and an inactive season (May–August). In total, 33 monitors were observed, of which 23 monitors were radio-tracked for up to 11 months. Radio tracking provided new information on the spatial ecology of V. varius. During summer (December–February), V. varius moved often, over large (184.5 ha) overlapping home-range areas. In the intermediate seasons of spring (September–November) and autumn (March–May), monitors moved less often and used less than 39% of the summer home-range. Finally, in the cold winter season (June–August) many monitors did not move at all and most used less than 5% of their summer home-ranges. The thermal environment, and reproductive status of V. varius affected its use of space, and the importance of these factors varied seasonally. No spatial segregation was noted between monitors, with home-ranges overlapping on average for eight other radio-tracked monitors. The home-range size of V. varius was accurately predicted using published data on body mass and home-range size for the Varanidae.

Keywords

spatial ecologyVaranus variusradio-tracking
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Zoology , Volume 258 , Issue 4 , December 2002 , pp. 449 - 457
Copyright
2002 The Zoological Society of London

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