Megalania

Megalania, generally classified as Varanus priscus, was an extinct giant monitor lizard that lived in Pleistocene Australia. It was among the largest known terrestrial lizards.

Varanus priscus: An extinct giant monitor lizard from Pleistocene Australia, commonly known as Megalania. This is the scientific name generally used for Megalania.
Australian fossil deposits: Sedimentary sites in Australia that preserve remains of ancient plants and animals. Fossils assigned to Megalania come from several Australian deposits.
Insular dwarfism: The evolutionary reduction in body size seen in some animal populations isolated on islands. Comparisons with island-dwelling monitor lizards help frame hypotheses about body size evolution.
Megalania prisca: An obsolete scientific name historically applied to the giant Australian monitor lizard now called Varanus priscus. The older name differs from the currently preferred combination.
Varanidae: The family of monitor lizards, including living species in the genus Varanus. Megalania belongs to this family of lizards.
Naracoorte Caves: A South Australian cave system containing fossil deposits spanning hundreds of thousands of years. Its deposits preserve Pleistocene Australian vertebrates relevant to Megalania’s fauna.
Pleistocene megafauna extinction: The widespread disappearance of large animal species during the late Pleistocene and early Holocene. Megalania’s extinction is considered within debates about Australia’s megafauna losses.
Megalania prisca versus Varanus priscus: The taxonomic change from the historically used genus Megalania to the current placement in Varanus. The name change reflects debate over whether the fossil animal merits a separate genus.
Monitor lizard: A large-bodied lizard in the family Varanidae, found across Africa, Asia, and Oceania. Megalania was an unusually large member of this broader group.
Lancefield Swamp: A fossil site in Victoria, Australia, known for remains of Pleistocene animals. The site’s fossil record contributes to knowledge of the fauna Megalania inhabited.

Linked from 2 pages