Reptiles
Lace Monitor
Varanus varius · also called lace goanna, tree goanna
A lace monitor strolls confidently into an eastern Australian campsite, unbothered by the presence of people, drawn by the reliable promise of scraps and unattended food. It is just as comfortable scaling a tall tree in search of eggs, or startling a hiker by using them, briefly, as the nearest available thing to climb.
Overview
The lace monitor, Varanus varius, is one of Australia’s largest monitor lizards, native to forest and woodland across eastern Australia. A powerful climber and opportunistic scavenger, it is a familiar and culturally significant presence known locally as a goanna.
A reptile woven into daily life
Between its bold campsite raids, its habit of laying eggs inside active termite mounds, and its long-standing place in Australian folklore, the lace monitor has become one of the country’s most recognisable and genuinely familiar large reptiles.
Status
Least Concern — widespread and stable across suitable forest and woodland habitat throughout eastern Australia.
Lace Monitor: common questions
Why might a lace monitor climb a person if startled?
A lace monitor's instinctive escape response when startled on the ground is to climb the nearest large vertical object, and in the absence of a suitable tree, this can occasionally mean climbing a nearby person, a behaviour that reflects the species' strong climbing instinct rather than any deliberate aggression toward humans.
Why does a lace monitor lay its eggs in termite mounds?
A female lace monitor often lays her eggs inside an active termite mound because the termites' own ongoing temperature and humidity regulation creates favourable, stable incubation conditions for the developing eggs, and she typically returns later to help the hatchlings dig their way back out once they are ready to emerge.
Why are lace monitors known for raiding campsites?
Lace monitors have a well-established reputation for boldly investigating campsites, picnic areas, and rubbish bins in parts of their range, an opportunistic scavenging behaviour that takes advantage of the easily accessible food often available around human activity, making the species a familiar sight to campers across much of eastern Australia.
How big can a lace monitor actually get?
The lace monitor is one of the largest monitor lizard species native to Australia, regularly reaching a considerable length that places it among the country's largest reptiles overall, exceeded in size within Australia by only a small number of other native monitor species.