Snake catcher rescues monitor lizard at a pool in Westville home
Nick Evans said the lizard has lived a hard life as it was blind in one eye and had a number of scars on the tail.
HIGHWAY snake catcher Nick Evans has appealed to the public to not panic if they see a monitor lizard in their garden.
“It’s not Godzilla. It won’t attack your family. They’re after smaller things, such as crabs, rodents, snakes – anything they can overpower.”
Though, he did advise that pet owners keep dogs away from them.
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“I’ve never seen an injury on a dog from one of these lizards, but I’ve seen plenty of monitors killed by dogs. You can leave it to move off, or call someone to remove and relocate it.”
The message comes after a 1.2m Nile monitor lizard was seen having a swim in a pool in Westville North last Friday evening.
“It’s not too uncommon a sighting but still quite an amusing sight. Swimming pools are cleaner than our rivers, so we can’t blame the lizards,” said Evans.
By the time the snake catcher arrived, the lizard had disappeared.
“They are usually able to get out, so I assumed that’s what it had done. But, the 1.2m-long lizard took cover in the small weir area. Looked quite funny seeing this large lizard peeping back at me through the holes of the plastic cover!”
“I half expected it to come flying out to escape, but it must have been in the pool a while and gotten cold. I opened the cover and grabbed it behind the head in a flash, but the lizard didn’t react much. It was okay the next day.”
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“Although, it was blind in one eye, which I’ve never seen before. It also had a number of scars on the tail, perhaps from a dog. It’s lived a hard life,” said Evans.
Evans’ friend who is studying Nile/water monitors came to collect data from it and released it for him.
According to Evans, monitor lizards are still relatively common in parts of Durban, particularly along rivers and streams.
“Sadly, many are killed by dogs, on roads, or hunted by people for food or traditional medicine. This is a protected species. It is illegal to kill, keep or sell this species.”
If people do see one, Evans said they should contact him or Euan Genevier.
“We are very interested in learning more about this amazing species, so observations around Durban and Pietermaritzburg are of interest,” he said.
Evans can be contacted at 072 809 5806 or nickevanskzn@gmail.com or email Euan at euangenevier34@gmail.com.
