Kamal Ghorui
Nile monitor lizards are opportunistic survivors. They go where food and comfort are easy to find.
Many modern gardens unknowingly become perfect hiding spots for them. Fish ponds, pet food bowls, compost piles, fallen fruits, poultry areas, garbage bins, and dense shrubs can all attract these reptiles. In warmer regions, they are also drawn toward cool shaded spaces under decks, wood piles, or abandoned corners.
Unlike snakes that usually hide quietly, Nile monitors are active explorers. They investigate their surroundings constantly and remember locations where food was previously found.
One surprising reason they enter residential spaces is water. These lizards love staying close to ponds, drainage canals, fountains, and swimming pools because they are strong swimmers and use water to regulate body temperature.
In some areas, urban growth has also reduced their natural habitats. Wetlands and riverbanks are disappearing, so wildlife slowly moves closer to human settlements.
The result is an uncomfortable overlap between nature and neighbourhoods.
