It seems there isn't much more I can add to this thread as you apparently know all there is to know about CITES and how its trade restrictions work, conservation biology, and the commercial trade in monitor lizards.



For the record, I did not say that you were planning on breaking any laws- I was pointing out that you seem to think that the laws and international trade restrictions put in place to protect these animals from commercial exploitation do not apply to you (i.e., selling them to pet shops/private keepers who want them to set up in an 'in store display'), and that you are going to get these animals anyways in spite of these restrictions- all in the name of "conservation" no less!. As others have pointed out to you already, you are in for a rude awakening.



It's nice to see that you are very enthusiastic about monitor lizards. I hope that this newfound interest will encourage you to read and learn more about their husbandry, biology, and conservation, or even get you to travel to observe and study them in the wild. I would heed the sound advice now given to you by several people in this thread (experienced individuals that might know a thing or two that you do not) and forgo your plans to attempt acquire threatened/endangered species under the guise that it will be for "conservation" purposes.



If anyone is interested in reading more into the exploitation and conservation status of monitor lizards, I highly recommend the following two articles:



www.zo.utexas.edu/courses/Thoc/CanHumansShareSpaceshipEarth.pdf



www.herpconbio.org/Volume_8/monographs/Koch_etal_2013.pdf

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