Animal Facts  Gray's Monitor  Scientific Name: Varanus olivaceus
Fast Fact:  Until its rediscovery in the 1980s, the Gray’s
monitor was believed to be extinct.  Gray's Monitor  Little is
known about this reclusive reptile; one of the largest lizards
in Asia.  STATUS: This monitor is classified as vulnerable by
the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), due
to habitat loss and predation by man.  HABITAT: The Gray’s
monitor (or "Butaan," as it is called by the locals) can be
found on only a few of the islands in the Philippines, primarily
on Luzon and Polillo. It spends most of its time in the trees of
the rainforests.  DIET: The Gray’s monitor is part of a small
group of Asian monitors that eat fruit as the main part of their
diet. As a juvenile it eats snails, crabs, and insects,
continuing to do so into adulthood as a supplement to fruit.
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS: The Gray’s monitor is one of the
largest lizards in Asia, growing up to five feet in length from
the tip of its snout to the end