Varanus flavescens
Yellow monitor
DISTRIBUTION: Pakistan, India, Nepal, Bangladesh (for detailed distribution data, see Auliya & Koch 2020)
RED LIST STATUS: Endangered (EN) in 2019
CITES: Appendix I
NATIONAL PROTECTION:
India. – Listed in Schedule 1, Part II of the Wildlife (Protection) Act of India, 1972
Nepal. – Listed in Schedule I of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation Act, 1973
THREATS:
Nepal. – Loss of wetlands; illegal killing for bushmeat (mostly) and sporadic evidences of trade
RESEARCH NEEDS:
General. – Evaluate impacts of harvest levels for domestic use
Nepal. – Population/occupancy estimates; evaluate impact of illegal killing
CURRENT PROJECTS
Nepal. – Current and future habitat suitability model for V. flavescens led by Suraj Baral; assessement of road kills of V. flavescens led by Santosh Bhattarai; assessment of poaching level and anitipoaching awareness led by Santosh Bhattarai
Adult wild Varanus flavescens, marshlands of lower bengal floodplains, southern West Bengal © Avrajjal Ghosh
Adult wild Varanus flavescens, near the floodplains of a river bed, grasslands of northern West Bengal © Sourav Mandal