Markhor, a 3 1/2 foot, 3 pound nile monitor (Varanus niloticus) that went missing in June from Little Rays Reptile Zoo and Nature Centre in Hamilton,
Markhor, a 3 1/2 foot, 3 pound nile monitor (Varanus niloticus) that went missing in June from Little Rays Reptile Zoo and Nature Centre in Hamilton, Ontario Canada, has been found, inside the zoo.
The nile monitor was thought to have escaped from a door that was left ajar, but he was actually in the zoo the entire time, under a desk that he had squeezed through, according to the zoo.
“It’s about a three inch gap underneath the front desk,” Kevin Dungey, zoo director at Little Rays Reptile Zoo and Nature Centre told Global News.” He seems to have squeezed himself in there and has spent the entire time there ever since.”
“He was in the building. He was in the zoo. He never got out the back door,” Dungey said in a video posted to social media.
Nile monitors are native to Africa and are invasive in Florida. The reptile can grow to more than six get in length and are known to have aggressive and ill-tempered attitudes. They are semi-aquatic and are rarely found away from water. The species is kept by expert keepers and are not recommended for those new to the hobby. While that 10-inch nile monitor hatchling may look cute at your local reptile store, they get very large and require expert care.
