The Yuwono monitor or tricolor monitor (''Varanus yuwonoi''), also commonly known as the black-backed mangrove monitor or the black-backed monitor, is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

of monitor lizard in the blue-tailed monitor

species complex In biology, a species complex is a group of closely related organisms that are so similar in appearance and other features that the boundaries between them are often unclear. The taxa in the complex may be able to hybridize readily with each oth ...

. (''Varanus yuwonoi'', new species). The tricolor monitor is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...

to the island of

Halmahera Halmahera, formerly known as Jilolo, Gilolo, or Jailolo, is the largest island in the Maluku Islands. It is part of the North Maluku province of Indonesia, and Sofifi, the capital of the province, is located on the west coast of the island. Ha ...

, in the

Maluku Islands The Maluku Islands (; Indonesian: ''Kepulauan Maluku'') or the Moluccas () are an archipelago in the east of Indonesia. Tectonically they are located on the Halmahera Plate within the Molucca Sea Collision Zone. Geographically they are located ...

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

Etymology

The specific epithet, ''yuwonoi'', is in honour of Indonesian herpetologist

Frank Bambang Yuwono Frank or Franks may refer to: People * Frank (given name) * Frank (surname) * Franks (surname) * Franks, a medieval Germanic people * Frank, a term in the Muslim world for all western Europeans, particularly during the Crusades - see Farang Curr ...

(born 1958).

Taxonomy

The tricolor monitor is a member of the blue-tailed monitor (''Varanus doreanus)'' species complex along with the blue-tailed monitor, Finsch's monitor, and the Mussau Island blue-tailed monitor.

Description

The fully mature size of tricolor monitors is currently unknown, owing to the great difficulty of observing this species. The largest individual recorded was 1.46 metres (4.79 feet) in total length (including tail) but was not fully grown. The species is strikingly colourful, with a bright blue tail and a yellow body. The tongue is also yellow, a shared characteristic of all species in the blue-tailed monitor species complex. The tail is heavily compressed and the teeth are proportionately very long compared to most monitors, even those which it is closely related to.

Geographic range and habitat

Tricolor monitors are endemic to Halmahera Island, and are primarily found in its inland rainforest, where they are sympatric with the turquoise monitor, Rainer Günther's monitor, and possibly the silver monitor.

Diet

Tricolor monitors are carnivorous. They frequent nest mounds excavated by megapodes, which attract smaller birds as well as small reptiles and insects that they may take as prey with their unusually long teeth. They may also consume megapode chicks and are reported to also excavate mounds to eat the eggs inside. This suggests that this species is specialized at ambushing birds.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q3011165 Varanus Reptiles of Indonesia Endemic fauna of Indonesia Fauna of Halmahera Reptiles described in 1998