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Atlas / Library / Varanidae / Ackie Monitor
IntermediateDiurnal · active nowCITES IIIUCN LC
Varanidae

Ackie Monitor

Varanus acanthurusเหี้ยแอคกี้ / มอนิเตอร์แอคกี้Ridge-tailed Monitor

Part of this is not on the page we cite. We opened it on 10 Aug 2026 and some of the degrees above are not stated there. The values above may still be right, but we cannot show you where they came from, and nobody here has checked them against a second source. Anything about a sick animal goes to a qualified exotic vet, not to a page. thebiodude.com

Photograph: Connor Margetts · CC0

Photographed by an observer on iNaturalist and published under a Creative Commons licence; the photographer and the licence are named under the image. It is not an animal of ours, and no animal was handled by us to produce it.

14:00
Day

Drag the sun. Ackie Monitor is diurnal, so what it is doing changes with the light. The sheet states a night temperature, and the rail follows it.

Burrowing · warm · middlingFrom the sheet: 25–30°C, humidity 40–60%

The way of life is written in this sheet, word for word. The climate words summarise the two figures above them, they do not add to them.

CITES II is a global listing and holds in every country. National law is not global, and we hold no national wildlife law for any country, Thailand included. Check your own authority before buying or selling.

Back to the globe My keep

https://keepr.pet/husbandry/en/varanus-acanthurus

‹ All husbandry guides
Temperature25–30 °C
Humidity40–60 %
Enclosure120×60×60
Diet1 days

The numbers

Temperature

152025303540 °C
25–30°Cool side
25°Night
Warm side: not in our data

The cool side, 25–30°C, dropping to 25°C at night. This sheet states the cool side only. It gives no warm side or basking figure, so the hot end is not in our data. Same scale on every sheet here, so two species compare by eye.

The sheet statescool 25-30 °C / night ~25 °C

Humidity

40–60%Target RH

The sheet states40-60% + humid burrow

UVB

Requiredrequired

The sheet statesStrong T5 HO required

Identity

Adult size

1.75 m60–75 cm
1520100400 cm
60–75 cmNose to tail, adult

The size the sheet states for a grown animal.

Why

Two drawings, because they answer two questions. The silhouette is at true scale against a 1.75 m person: it says how big this animal actually is, which no number does for someone who has never seen one. The bar under it is logarithmic and shared by every sheet here, so a 2 cm isopod and a 4 m python both stay readable on the same axis and two species can be compared at a glance.

Family / Order
Varanidae / Squamata
Adult size
60–75 cm (incl. tail)
Lifespan (captivity)
15–20 yrs
Activity
Diurnal; terrestrial, burrower
Temperament
Intelligent, active; tames well ('mini monitor')

Enclosure and conditions

Enclosure

substratewater40–60 % RHUVB tube120 cm60 cm
watersubstrateUVB tube
50100150200 cm
120 × 60 × 60 cmWidth × depth × height
72dm² of floor
Warm side: not in our dataHides: not in our data

Drawn from the stated numbers. Only what the sheet states is drawn inside.

Why

The rectangle carries the exact width-to-height ratio of the figures above it, and the ruler under it places that width on the 0–250 cm scale every sheet here shares, so two species still compare at a glance. Nothing is added that the sheet does not name: a lamp drawn on a sheet that never mentions one would be invented equipment. What the sheet leaves out is listed rather than left blank, because an empty tank reads as « none needed ».

The sheet states120 × 60 × 60 cm minimum; bigger better

Basking
50–60 °C (120–150 °F) surface — very hot spot
Cool side
25–30 °C
Night
~25 °C
Humidity
40–60% + humid burrow
UVB (required)
Strong T5 HO required
Min. size
120 × 60 × 60 cm minimum; bigger better
Substrate
30–60 cm deep soil/sand (burrowing)
Water
Bowl

What your climate adds

This sheet states a range to hold. Your local climate decides how much work holding it is. Pick the nearest city: nothing is sent anywhere, the choice stays in this browser.

Diet

Feeding rhythm

every 1 dAs an adult
28Meals in 28 days

Twenty-eight days, one row. Each band is a meal window. The sheet gives several ages on one line; this is the adult figure.

Why

The windows widen as they go because the interval is a range: four meals after a 10–14 day cycle land anywhere between day 40 and day 56.

The sheet statesCrickets, dubia, roaches; occasional pinky/egg · Juveniles daily; adults most days

Diet type
Insectivore (occasional whole prey)
Staple insects
Crickets, dubia, roaches; occasional pinky/egg
Frequency
Juveniles daily; adults most days
Calcium
Dust + multivitamin

Behaviour and handling

HandlingTolerant, intelligent, food-motivated; tames with routine
DiggingExtensive burrows: deep substrate essential
CohabitationPairs/groups possible with space (advanced)
DefenseFast; tail whip; rarely bites when tame
ChildrenAdult supervision

Reproduction

Life course

Day 0Hatch
1.5–2 yrSexual maturity
15–20 yrLifespan in care
90–120 dIncubation
4–18 eggs, multiple clutchesClutch
15 yrMinimum commitment
~13 yrReproductive window

Read from the lifespan and maturity the sheet states, for animals in care and not in the wild.

Why

The minimum commitment is the low end of that lifespan, and the reproductive window is what is left after maturity: both are subtractions on stated figures, not figures of their own.

Sexual maturity
~1.5–2 yrs
Clutch
4–18 eggs, multiple clutches
Incubation
~90–120 days at ~29–30 °C
Sexing
Difficult; hemipenal/behavior

Common health problems

Metabolic bone disease
Signsweak limbs; poor growth
Preventstrong UVB + calcium + hot basking
Insufficient basking temps
Signsmost health issues trace here
Preventverify SURFACE temp 50–60 °C
Obesity
Signsfatty feeders / low activity
Preventlean feeders + large active space
Parasites
Signsweight loss
Preventquarantine + fecal test

When to see a vet

This is not veterinary advice. If red flags appear (open-mouth breathing, months of weight loss, 'stargazing', persistent regurgitation) consult a qualified exotic (herp) veterinarian. Quarantine new arrivals 30–90 days.

Good to know

  • One of the smallest, most manageable monitors: a true 'beginner monitor'.
  • Highly intelligent: learns feeding routines and recognises keepers.
  • Needs the hottest basking spot of common pet lizards (~60 °C surface).
  • One of the smallest, most manageable monitors — a true 'beginner monitor'.
  • Highly intelligent — learns feeding routines and recognises keepers.

Common questions

Is it like a mini Komodo?

Same genus intelligence, dog-smart, but manageable size.

Why such a hot basking spot?

Monitors need intense heat to digest and thrive.

Beginner monitor?

Yes among monitors: but needs a big, deep, hot setup.

What it needs

Enclosure at least 120 × 60 × 60 cmbecause enclosure120 × 60 × 60 cm minimum; bigger better
A thermometerbecause tempcool 25-30 °C / night ~25 °C
A way to check the night figurebecause tempcool 25-30 °C / night ~25 °C
A hygrometerbecause humidity40–60% + humid burrow
UVB (T5), stated as requiredbecause uvbStrong T5 HO required
Not stated: The heat sourcethis sheet names only the cool side: « cool 25-30 °C / night ~25 °C »

Every line above is deduced from a value this sheet states, and names which one. Nothing here is a general recommendation. What the sheet does not state is listed too, rather than left out: a kit that looks complete is worse than one that names its gap.

  • Large enclosure 120×60×60+
  • Deep soil/sand substrate
  • Strong T5 UVB
  • High-wattage basking + thermostat
  • Rock/hardscape
  • Large water bowl
  • Calcium + multivitamin
  • Feeder insects + IR thermometer

Sources

Others in this group

What this sheet states

100%
TemperatureHumidityEnclosure sizeActivityOriginDietSourcesUVB

Every field this product runs on is stated here. That is not a claim that the values are right: it says what the sheet states, not whether it is true. Whether a human has read it is the badge at the top of this page.

UVB is measured but does not count: it is absent from 421 of 678 sheets, and on most of them that is not a gap, since a nocturnal snake's sheet has no reason to state a UV index. Counting it would call the library incomplete without cause.