You are here » home › advanced search › Varanus primordius

Varanus primordius MERTENS, 1942

IUCN Red List - Varanus primordius - Least Concern, LC
iNaturalist logo

Can you confirm these amateur observations of Varanus primordius?

Add your own observation of
Varanus primordius »

Find more photos by Google images search: Google images

Higher TaxaVaranidae, Platynota, Varanoidea, Anguimorpha, Sauria, Squamata (lizards)
Subspecies 
Common NamesE: Northern Blunt-spined Monitor 
SynonymVaranus acanthurus primordius MERTENS 1942: 41
Varanus (Odatria) acanthurus primordius MERTENS 1958: 234
Varanus primordius — STORR 1966
Varanus primordius — COGGER 1983
Worrellisaurus primordius — WELLS & WELLINGTON 1985: 22
Varanus primordius — DE LISLE 1996: 133
Varanus primordius — COGGER 2000: 371
Varanus primordius — WILSON & SWAN 2010
Varanus (Odatria) primordius — HÖRENBERG & KOCH 2013
Varanus (Odatria) primordius — BUCKLITSCH et al. 2016: 50 
DistributionAustralia (N Northern Territory)

Type locality: North Australia.  
Reproductionoviparous 
TypesHolotype: ZMB 6204 
DiagnosisAdditional details, e.g. a detailed description or comparisons (2850 characters), are available for collaborators and contributors. Please contact us for details. 
Comment 
EtymologyPresumably named after the Latin primordius (original or early), in reference to the form of the keeling of the tail scalation, which Mertens considered to represent a primordial stage ancestral to the development of the greater keeling in V. acanthurus. (G. Shea, pers. comm., 9 Feb 2024) 
References
  • Augstenová, Barbora, Eleonora Pensabene, Lukáš Kratochvíl, and Michail Rovatsos. 2021. Cytogenetic Evidence for Sex Chromosomes and Karyotype Evolution in Anguimorphan Lizards. Cells 10, no. 7: 1612 - get paper here
  • Bennet, D.F. 2003. Australian Monitors. Reptilia (GB) (30): 12-19 - get paper here
  • Bennet, D.F. 2003. Australische Warane. Reptilia (Münster) 8 (43): 18-25 - get paper here
  • Cogger, H. G. 2014. Reptiles and Amphibians of Australia, 7th ed. CSIRO Publishing, xxx + 1033 pp. - get paper here
  • Cogger, H.G. 2000. Reptiles and Amphibians of Australia, 6th ed. Ralph Curtis Publishing, Sanibel Island, 808 pp.
  • Eidenmüller, Bernd 2013. Von Darwin nach Alice Springs – der Warane wegen. Draco 13 (53): 55-61 - get paper here
  • Hörenberg, Thomas & André Koch 2013. Die Zwergwarane der Untergattung Odatria Gray, 1838. Draco 13 (53): 6-19 - get paper here
  • Jolly, C., Schembri, B., & Macdonald, S. 2023. Field Guide to the Reptiles of the Northern Territory. CSIRO Publishing, Melbourne - get paper here
  • Lisle, H.F. de 1996. Natural History of Monitor Lizards. Krieger, Malabar (Florida)
  • Mertens, R. 1942. Ein weiterer neuer Waran aus Australien. Zool. Anz. 137: 41-44
  • Mertens, R. 1958. Bemerkungen über die Warane Australiens. Senckenbergiana biologica 39: 229-264
  • Mertens, R. 1966. Ein neuer Zwergwaran aus Australien. Senckenbergiana biologica 47: 437-441
  • Pianka, E. R. and D. R. King, eds. 2004. Varanoid Lizards of the World. Indiana University Press, 599 pp - get paper here
  • Sprackland, R. G. 2001. Dwarf monitors. Reptile and Amphibian Hobbyist 6 (10): 8-16
  • Storr, G. M. 1966. Rediscovery and taxonomic status of the Australian lizard, Varanus primordius. Copeia 1966 (3): 583-584 - get paper here
  • Wilson, S. & Swan, G. 2010. A complete guide to reptiles of Australia, 3rd ed. Chatswood: New Holland, 558 pp.
 
External links  
Is it interesting? Share with others:


Please submit feedback about this entry to the curator