Monitor Lizards

Monitor lizards are lizards that appear in The Lion Guard universe. They live in the Outlands.

In the Real World
Rock monitors are the heaviest lizards in Africa and the second-longest after the Nile monitors. They have long bodies with glossy gray-green or brownish-yellow scales as well as blue forked tongues and box-shaped heads. Nile monitors are the longest African lizards and have long bodies with greyish-brown scales on their backs with greenish-yellow bars on the tail, and large greenish-yellow rosette like spots on their backs with a blackish spot in the center of these rosettes, their throats and undersides are ochre-yellow to creamy-yellow often with faint barring. Rock monitors tend to favor dry areas while Nile Monitors prefer wet areas, but there is much variation with both species. Their venom prevents blood clotting and causes a drop in blood pressure.

In The Lion Guard
Monitor lizards are long, sleek reptiles with shiny swamp green scales. Some dark, muddy grey stripes go along their back, and cover their forelegs and feet, inverting the swamp green colors. Towards the top of their body, the stripes are outlined with a pale yellow line. They have a cream underbelly and five sharp black claws, and a few muddy grey spots. Their irises are brown and they have fangs, the upper ones are exposed when their mouths are closed. They are also apparently much larger than in real life, as they have been described to be big as a  crocodile. They also have venom that temporarily paralyze almost any animal they bite.

In the Real World
Monitor lizard is the common name of several large lizard species, comprising the genus Varanus. They are native to Africa, Asia and Oceania, but are now found also in the Americas as an invasive species. A total of 79 species are currently recognized. Monitor lizards have long necks, powerful tails and claws, and well-developed limbs. The adult length of extant species ranges from 20 cm (8 in) in some species, to over 3 m (10 ft) in the case of the Komodo dragon, though the extinct varanid known as Megalania (Varanus priscus) may have been capable of reaching lengths of more than 7 m (23 ft). Most monitor species are terrestrial, but arboreal and semiaquatic monitors are also known. Just like snakes, monitor lizards flick their forked tongues in the air to detect scent particles that will lead them to potential food source. While most monitor lizards are carnivorous, eating eggs, smaller reptiles, fish, birds, amphibians and small mammals, some species also eat fruit and vegetation, depending on where they live.

The Bite of Kenge
A monitor lizard named Kenge allied himself with Janja and his clan to steal watermelons from the Pride Lands, but they are eventually thwarted by the Lion Guard and Makini.

Notable Monitor Lizards in The Lion Guard

 * Kenge