Search

Malayan Water Monitors’ greetings

on 2nd June 2019

Dr Lee Van Hien’s image of a pair of Malayan Water Monitoirs (Varanus salvator) greeting each other with their forked tongues lasted less than two seconds. Immediately after, the pair moved away.

According to Wikipedia, most lizards, like snakes, indulge in chemical communication. They stick out their tongue to “taste” the chemicals present in the air or on various surfaces. They thus can detect the movements of other lizards earlier on without actually coming in contact with them.

In this particular case, the two lizards came face to face with each other, made tactile communication and moved off without any conflict. It can be courtship related or even territorial infringement peacefully resolved.

Dr Lee Van Hien
Singapore
28th April 2019

This post is a cooperative effort between Birds, Insects N Creatures Of Asia and BESG to bring the study of birds and their behaviour through photography and videography to a wider audience.

If you like this post please tap on the Like button at the left bottom of page. Any views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the authors/contributors, and are not endorsed by the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum (LKCNHM, NUS) or its affiliated institutions. Readers are encouraged to use their discretion before making any decisions or judgements based on the information presented.

YC Wee

Dr Wee played a significant role as a green advocate in Singapore through his extensive involvement in various organizations and committees: as Secretary and Chairman for the Malayan Nature Society (Singapore Branch), and with the Nature Society (Singapore) as founding President (1978-1995). He has also served in the Nature Reserve Board (1987-1989), Nature Reserves Committee (1990-1996), National Council on the Environment/Singapore Environment Council (1992-1996), Work-Group on Nature Conservation (1992) and Inter-Varsity Council on the Environment (1995-1997). He is Patron of the Singapore Gardening Society and was appointed Honorary Museum Associate of the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum (LKCNHM) in 2012. In 2005, Dr Wee started the Bird Ecology Study Group. With more than 6,000 entries, the website has become a valuable resource consulted by students, birdwatchers and researchers locally and internationally. The views and opinions expressed in this article are his own, and do not represent those of LKCNHM, the National University of Singapore or its affiliated institutions.

Other posts by YC Wee

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Categories
Archives

Overall visits (since 2005)

Live visitors
1031
32794
Visitors Today
51771795
Total
Visitors

Clustrmaps (since 2016)