Home range of male lace monitors, Varanus varius (Reptilia : Varanidae), in south-eastern Australia

Abstract

Travelling paths and overnight roosts of the lace monitor, Varanus varius, were recorded by radiotracking during periods of up to 19 months in lowland open forest of south-eastern Australia. Home ranges were calculated by four methods: convex polygon (without correction for small sample size), convex polygon (with correction for small sample size), and two 95% probability ellipses. From field observations, I conclude that the convex polygon method without correction for sample size provides the most realistic description of the space used by V. varius. By this method, I calculated a mean (+/- s.d.) home range of 65 +/- 34 ha for 13 male V. varius (mean mass 5.1kg) that were radio-tracked for 2-19 months.