Durban — Nick Evans, fondly known as Durban’s snake rescuer, has shared something that left him encouraged when rescuing a monitor lizard in uMlazi in June.
Evans highlighted one of the nicest things he witnessed when he and University of KwaZulu-Natal Nile monitor researcher Euan Genevier rescued the lizard one evening.
“The caller, scared of the lizard, and not wanting it around, did not want it harmed. Sadly, these lizards are slaughtered often, which is illegal. She didn’t want that.
“She was concerned for its well-being and really interested in it. Once we had it under control, she was excited at being a ‘grandmother’ to the lizard's future babies if all goes well,” Evans said.
“It was so encouraging to see, and we are so grateful she called.”
Recalling what happened that day, Evans said he received a call in the evening for a monitor lizard on a retaining wall. At first, he was sceptical because they never get called for the large, diurnal lizards at night, and he assumed it had been seen earlier in the day.
He said that a photo came through from the caller, confirming the lizard was still on the wall.
Evans said that if it was another time of the year, he would have thought it was strange behaviour but in May and as he has learnt, early June, is the time when the lizards lay their eggs.
“From the photo, I could see it had a rather swollen mid-body,” Evans said.
He and Genevier headed to the home which bordered a stream.
“To our relief, the lizard hadn’t moved. I approached it from ground level, while Euan approached it from above, anticipating it to bolt when we neared. It didn't. To our surprise, it didn't move at all. It was the easiest monitor catch ever,” Evans said.
“When I picked her up, we could see she was full of eggs.”
Evans said that the caller explained that the lizard dug holes in the retaining wall for hours during the day, as well as the previous day, and had been seen in her garden, close to the wall, on numerous occasions in the previous two weeks.
He said that clearly that was where the lizard wanted to lay its eggs but was having issues.
“Initially, we presumed she was struggling to fit into the spaces between the retaining blocks, to lay. What did worry us, was that her tail and legs were visibly underweight,” Evans said.
He said that the gravid (pregnant) lizard was transported to Dangerous Creatures at uShaka Sea World, the next day.
“Despite her bloated stomach, her weight was still a concern, and the fact that she hadn't yet laid. We were also worried that she had put up absolutely no fight at all when captured, as they usually do.
“A concern raised was that she could be egg-bound, basically meaning she was unable to lay her eggs, which can be a life-threatening condition,” Evans explained.
“We opted against immediate release, due to her health concerns, and the stress of her having to find a whole new nest site. Instead, she was given a safe, quiet space to lay her eggs.”
Evans said that after a few days of not laying eggs, the veterinary team intervened. They gave the distressed mother lizard fluids and medication to induce the laying process.
He said that the intervention was successful.
“By the next day, she had laid 27 eggs! It was really exciting! They’re in an incubator, and if all goes well, will they will hopefully hatch in a few months,” Evans said.
He also said that after a few days of TLC, and once given the green light by the veterinary team, he and Genevier collected the lizard for release.
“Before setting her free, we collected various measurements, weight and more, for Euan’s project, and then we headed out to a reserve to set her free. I’ll share a video, showing a lot of what I've mentioned, including the release,” Evans said.
He said it was a stressful, educational and exciting rescue.
“We are extremely grateful to the veterinary and Dangerous Creatures teams at uShaka for ensuring the lizard survived this ordeal,” Evans said.
Many other experienced individuals offered their input and advice on how to best help this animal, in this predicament which they had not experienced before with a monitor. The info shared was really helpful, and he is thankful to those who advised, he said.
To contribute to this study of suburban Nile/water monitor lizards in Durban and Pietermaritzburg, please send photos of any seen (with date, time and location of sighting, to [email protected] or [email protected]
“If you need one removed, call me on 072 809 5806,” Evans said.
“This species is listed as a Threatened or Protected Species (TOPS). It is illegal to kill, keep or sell them.”
WhatsApp your views on this story to 071 485 7995.
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