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Thursday, August 23, 2018

Fred

Rodney and I were chilling at a cabana in Club Med when a ginormous lizard that looked like it had just crawled out of Jurassic Park approached us.
On any ordinary day, I would have freaked out big time and out-sprinted Usain Bolt to safety! But I had earlier read about the presence of these friendly monitor lizards in the resort and was actually looking forward to meeting one.
The stuff horror movies are made of

These critters are everywhere at the village resort. They don't look too friendly, do they? Apparently, they are not interested in humans as meals despite their scary appearance.

Rodney named it Fred because it looked like a Fred!
Fred seemed to enjoy our company and hung out with us the whole morning. He even snuggled up to Rodney's feet!

While I was reading a book and Rodney was messing with his phone, Fred dug holes around our cabana, presumably looking for food.  Now I know why there were curious holes all over the resort grounds!
Fred allowed me to touch him! His skin felt kinda scaly and hard; not my idea of a warm and cuddly pet though!

When it was time to say goodbye, we were sad to leave our newly acquainted friend.

Fred's buddy. This one had a huge belly and was chowing on pancakes!
Fun Facts

Monitor lizards (Varanus Indicus) are carnivores. They use their venom to kill their prey. Fortunately, the venom has a relatively mild effect on humans.
These lizards are naturally shy and would rather stay away from humans. Like most wild animals, they do not attack unless provoked. As long as you keep your distance and leave them alone, you will be fine.

On the rare occasion that you are bitten, seek medical attention immediately. Although their venom is not fatal, the main cause for concern would be bacterial infection from the bite.

Another one of Fred's buddies
Some of these lizards can grow up to 3 metres (9.8 ft) long!

The above photos taken by my crummy phone don't do justice to how a real monitor lizard looks like.

Below is a photo I snagged from the internet just to give you an idea how formidable it really is.

In Chinese, we call it "four-legged snake". It kinda looks like a cross between a snake and an alligator.

Often, these monitor lizards are mistaken for Komodo Dragons, their more aggressive cousins. Those, you don't want to mess with. Trust me! Their saliva is extremely venomous
image credit - Smithsonian.com
That forked tongue! 


Keep Calm and Carry On Linking Sunday

34 comments:

  1. That's cool that you got to see Fred...although I am thinking that he's gonna get himself in trouble being too friendly with the tourists. Once people start petting him and giving him human food, it rarely ends well. Stay safe, Fred!

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  2. I'll let you do the petting, but I enjoyed the history lesson.

    Have a fabulous day. ♥

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  3. They would freak me out if I first saw them, but then I would want to learn more about them too. They seem perfectly at home there, don't they?

    betty

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  4. Wow, that's pretty cool that they are so friendly.

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  5. Fascinating ... even if I would rather not get to close myself!! #GlobabBlogging

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  6. Oh so creepy.. no offence to Fred.
    We saw a few iguana's when we were an Mexico.. hen were promptly told by a local how his grandma makes great iguana soup ?!

    https://henatayeb.blogspot.com

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  7. Wow, that's what you call a fantasy style holiday, Veronica. You even had "dragons" at your resort! Ha! Ha! While they look kind of fun, I think I would keep my distance. I'm the poor sucker who would probably get an ankle bit. ;-)

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  8. Very cool! He DOES look like a Fred! #globalblogging

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  9. What a nice story but what I want to know is did you keep in touch with Fred since text, email, fax or letter maybe? :-) :-)

    Have a fdtastic week Veronica :-)

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  10. Beautiful photos. I love monitor lizards and think that they are groovy. Thanks for sharing this.

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  11. I think they are so interesting! So prehistoric looking. Their tongues - wow! I'd be out there taking photos of it for sure.

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  12. That is one big lizard!! I don't like the small ones too much so I don't think I would like that one at all... LOL!

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  13. Wow it is not every day you get to hang out with the likes of Fred. #bloggerclubUK

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  14. Wow this is huge but fun to pet and learn a little more about them. Some great shots too! Thanks for sharing with #bloggersbest x

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  15. Yikes! Creatures like this are why I love living in a place with cold winters.:)

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  16. I'm terrified by lizards in general but I don't mind viewing them from a safe perch! #GlobalBlogging

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  17. He is lovely and what a cool smile to have at home X #thatfridaylinky

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  18. thats pretty neat. There were a lot of lizards running around our resort in Aruba on our honeymoon ten years ago. I won't discuss how much time my wife spent running around trying to pet them #thatfridaylinky

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  19. It’s cool but I would not go anywhere near that Thank you for linking to #Thatfridaylinky please come back next week

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  20. What a fabulous sight. Not sure I'd be brave enough to go for a stroke of him though #globalblogging

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  21. oooh my... I might be running way from it as well :). he looks cool, though..

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  22. You are so brave. There is no way that I would have approached or touched that lizard. You go girl, lol.

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  23. oh nonononono Im not that brave. Great picture though :-)

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  24. Gosh, that would have scared me to death, glad to see that Fred was a friendly lizard #,kcacols@_karendenbid199@gmail is

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  25. Aw he looks quite a character. We have our own Jerassic Park at Coombe Mill, no lizards in there though just poultry and ducks! #KCACOLS

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  26. Oh, Fred is adorable. OK, he's not cute and cuddly, but he is kind of cute looking in a lizardy kind of way. There really is something very interesting about reptiles. And even though you took the photos with your phone, I think they're pretty good :-) x

    #KCACOLS

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  27. This looks neat to me! I like lizards, alligators, and crocodiles. You've taken some great pictures. #KCACOLS

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  28. What amazing creatures. Absolutely fascinating. Not sure how I would feel about getting close! #KCACOLS

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  29. We get lots of them here. Their bite won't kill you but it won't heal (ever, or something.Just don't let it bite you). And don't scare them - if scared, they'll run up the tallest thing to get to safety, and if it's you, they'll run up you with those claws....thinking you're a tree. #KCACOLS

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  30. Oh my word, I'm not sure how I'd react if one of those wandered over to me! I suppose you get used to them quite quickly though if they're all over the resort! x #KCACOLS

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  31. I love Fred. I want Fred. Not sure how the cats would feel about that though. Thanks for linking up with #kcacols, hope you can come back next time.

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  32. Oh my goodness I'd have run in the opposite direction! #KCACOLS

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