UAE: Endangered Bengal Monitor lizard found in shipping container in Fujairah
Environment officials handle large reptile after tip off from a company
Fujairah: A large Bengal Monitor lizard, which is threatened with extinction, has been found in a shipping container in Fujairah, it was revealed on Sunday.
The biodiversity team at the Fujairah Environment Authority (FEA) responded to a telephone complaint from a company in the emirate stating that there was an animal inside an imported shipping container. The team handled the container with caution and found the reptile.
The Authority confirmed that the Bengal Monitor is one of the species listed in Appendix 1 of the CITES Agreement (on Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species).
The recovered animal was kept in quarantine and then, in coordination and communication with the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, handed over to Umm Al Quwain Zoo.
The authority called on community members to contact them if they spot any strange animals, urging them not to handled the wildlife themselves.