Megalania (Varanus priscus), also known as the giant goanna, is an extinct species of giant goanna or monitor lizard, part of the megafaunal assemblage that inhabited Australia during the Pleistocene. It is the largest terrestrial lizard known to have existed, reaching an estimated length of 3.5 to 7 meters (11.5–23 feet), and weighing between 97–1,940 kilograms (214–4,277 pounds), but the fragmentary nature of known remains make estimates highly uncertain.
Megalania is thought to have had a similar ecology to the living Komodo dragon (Varanus komodoensis). The youngest fossil remains of giant monitor lizards in Australia date to around 50,000 years ago. The first indigenous settlers of Australia might have encountered megalania, and been a factor in megalania's extinction. While originally megalania was considered to be the only member of the titular genus "Megalania" (Megalania prisca), today it is considered a member of the genus Varanus, being closely related to other Australian monitor lizards.
They were part of a megafaunal assemblage that inhabited southern Australia during the Pleistocene. The first aboriginal settlers of Australia would have encountered them. Megalania is the largest terrestrial lizard known to have existed. Judging from its size, it would have fed mostly upon medium to large sized animals, including any of the giant marsupials like Diprotodon, its' main apex predator rival Thylacoleo, and Procoptodon; along with other reptiles like Quinkana, Meiolania, and Wonambi and small mammals, as well as birds like Bullockornis and Genyornis and their eggs and chicks and even early man. It had heavily built limbs and body and a large skull complete with a small crest in between the eyes, and a jaw full of serrated blade-like teeth. Along with other varanid lizards, such as the Komodo dragon and the lace monitor, Megalania belongs to the proposed clade Toxicofera, which contains all known reptile clades possessing toxin-secreting oral glands, as well as their close, non-venomous relatives, including Iguania, Anguimorpha, and Serpentes. Being a member of Anguimorpha, Megalania may have been venomous and if so, would be the largest venomous vertebrate known.
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Games[]
Jurassic Park: Builder[]
Megalania appears in the Glacier Park of Jurassic Park: Builder as a gold creature.
Jurassic World: Alive[]
see Megalania/JW: A
Megalania appears in Jurassic World: Alive as an omega cunning + fierce creature. Megalania was added alongside Constrictoraptor in Update 3.0 CU.[1]
