It isn’t every day that a two-meter-long water monitor makes its way to a supermarket, but that is exactly what happened this week to a Thai supermarket. Visitors to the Bangkok store were amazed at the sight of the monitor moving freely through the aisles and along the shelves. While some buyers were scared of the lizard, some chose to photograph it; the videos rapidly went viral.
One video shows the monitor clambering up the store shelves and stopping to rest at the top. Some viewers speculate that it is trying to escape the heat of the day outside.
The proprietor of the store called the police, who rapidly removed it from the premises. Online speculation originally labeled it a Komodo dragon, but anatomical differences eventually led to its correct identification.
The water monitor is the second largest lizard in the world (after the Komodo dragon) and is found in water reservoirs in Thailand.
Despite its frightening size, water monitors will usually flee from humans; the cases of one harming a human have been largely out of self-defense. Authorities recommend staying clear of water monitors in supermarkets rather than trying to film them.