Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Iwas just looking through Guide on the satelite system and noticed that the wild kingdom episode featuring Daniel Bennett and the Gray's monitor (Butaan is the episode title.)is airing on wednesday the 19th at 7pm (and at 11pm and probably twice after that but my guide doesn't go past 11pm for that day.) I figured I would post it for benefit of the poster inquring about them last week and for anyone else interested. Iy is a really interesting documentary. I was really amazed that of all the fruits that grow in southeast asia (and there are lots of them.) that their favorite fruit is a "tourist's pinapple" or a pandanas, go figure. Anyway if you haven't seen it check it out.

I agree, it was a very interesting episode! Thanks for letting us know of the next airing.

Although they say its a fruit eating monitor, it has no problem eating rodents when in captivity. At any rate, its quite a beautiful monitor.

I am aware that they are not Obligate Frugivores but frugivory in any monitor is interesting. My thing with it is in addition to being into herpeteculture I am a plant geek as well and I am seriously into tropical fruit trees paricularly south-east asian fruits. We once had Winston Card come do a talk at our herp society in cent. fl. many years ago and he commented on how although gray's monitor is frugivorous they had trouble getting the ones at the Dallas Zoo to eat fruit and he claimed they tried everything. Of course I had a lot of fun with this guy. In my opinion his knowledge of fruits wasn't quite up to par for what I think a zoo-keeper should have. That aside the fact that gray's monitors eat pandanas fruit is really unusual this fruit is called a tourist's pinapple or a famine fruit for a reason.

If anybody could record this and send us a copy on DVD we would be very grateful. Animal Planet promised us a copy of it, but they never sent it.
Thanks
daniel

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Mampam Conservation