By Ken Sakamoto, Star-Bulletin
The captured monitor lizard.

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Monitor lizard captured
near Waimanalo

Officials are probing where
the 3-foot-long reptile came from

By Trish Moore
Star-Bulletin

State quarantine officials are wondering how it was that a 3-foot-long lizard was crawling the beach near Waimanalo.

The monitor lizard was spotted at Kaiona Beach Park Tuesday morning by Waimanalo resident Manny Fernandez, who scooped it with his fishing net and turned it over to the Department of Agriculture's Plant Quarantine Station.

Monitor lizards can grow up to 6-1/2 feet in length at full maturity.

Agriculture officials want to know where the reptile came from because they can be dangerous for children and small mammals. "They have a nasty bite and very powerful tail," a department statement said.

"They feed on small mammals, insects and oftentimes eggs, which would cause much damage to our island's ecosystems."

The lizard is being transferred today to the Honolulu Zoo, which has the option to either keep it for display, or ship the animal out of state.

The department is asking anyone with information about the source of the lizard or about any large lizards and other illegal animals to call its pest hot line at 586-7378.