Giant goanna in Thurgoona

ERIC Holland was just killing time in his shed when he came across a mature Lace Monitor in his backyard earlier this week.

“I was just doing a repair job in my shed when I opened the door and I saw this huge thing run across the ground and out of sight,” Mr Holland said. 

“I went inside after I saw it in the backyard and heard a banging noise coming from the side of the house,”

“When I went outside I saw him on the side of the house with his tail hitting the drain pipe,” Mr Holland said. 

Mr Holland was quick enough to snap a photo of the estimated five-foot goanna scaled on the side of his Thurgoona home. 

Mr Holland has lived in the area for 18 years and said he has never seen anything similar on his property.

“It was a big surprise really,”

“I sometimes get blue tongues and lizards in the backyard but never anything quite like this.”

The goanna quickly shuffled off Mr Holland's property. Mr Holland has not sighted the reptile since.  

The NSW Office of Environment and Heritage said it would not be unusual for a Lace Monitor to be found in the area around Albury.

Lace Monitors can grow to around two metres in length and weigh up to 20 kilograms.