Planet earth is home to more than 6000 types of lizards. Many of these reptiles are known for their colourful appearance, especially the tiny geckos and iguanas. The large species known as monitor lizards is more common in Singapore. Lizards are generally harmless creatures, but there are some features that are worth noting.

Table of contents

• Lizard biology
• Types of Lizards in Singapore
• Monitor Lizards
• What to do if you see a monitor lizard?
• Are house lizards dangerous?
• Are lizards pets or pests?
• What are lizards attracted to?
• Where to find lizards around the home?
• How to get rid of lizards

Lizards are closely related to snakes. Their build, copulatory organs and skull are identical. Most lizards have long tails and four legs.

Their colourful appearance is a special attribute of most types of lizards. The lizard family is so large that it is hard to describe their characteristics in too much detail. Geckos, for example, are tiny lizards (about 3cm long), while some species of monitor lizards can grow up to 3m long.

Most lizards eat insects, which actually makes them a genuine candidate to help with pest prevention. Iguanas are also part of the lizard family, though they eat plants instead of insects. The monitor lizard species are another exception. Besides insects, they also feed on snakes and fish.

There are many types of lizards in Singapore. We will focus on the species that are most common outdoors and indoors. The monitor lizards are active outdoors and fall under the Singaporean Wildlife Act, while geckos are known to be house lizards.

Types of lizards in Singapore:

• Malayan water monitor lizard
• Clouded monitor lizard
• Dumeril’s monitor lizard
• Four-Clawed Gecko
• Asian House Gecko
• Flat-Tailed Gecko
• Spotted House Gecko

The most noteworthy type of lizard in Singapore is the monitor lizard. Monitor lizards have various sub-types, including the Malayan water monitor lizard, clouded monitor lizard and Dumeril’s monitor lizard.

Monitor lizards are protected by Singapore law as they are considered to be wild animals. Under the Wildlife Act it is illegal to remove wild animals. In addition, monitor lizards fall under the Parks and Trees Act. As such, they are protected in nature reserves and other areas that are managed by the National Parks Board (NParks).

Killem Pest is accredited by NParks to trap and take certain wildlife in line with the Wildlife Act 1965.

Monitor lizards are shy and they generally stay away from humans. Only in rare cases will they attack you. Do not touch, chase or provoke monitor lizards as that can trigger an unlikely attack.

If you do receive a bite, you need to seek medical attention immediately. Monitor lizards are one of the few lizard species that are venomous, though the venom is not fatal to humans.

Unfortunately, poaching of monitor lizards in Singapore occurs. The National Parks Board advice is to take photo or video evidence if you encounter poaching, and to call the Animal Response Center: 1800-476-1600.

House lizards (geckos) generally pose very little risk. In rare cases, lizards can carry salmonella. The droppings and urine can transmit salmonella. Keeping the house clean and food covered is a good practice to minimize the risk of salmonella.

As mentioned previously, some lizards are actually useful as they eat other insects. House lizards will do their best to eat flies and mosquitoes. If you have a lot of lizards at home, it is probably a sign of many insects in your house as well.

Whether you consider a lizard or any type of species to be a pet or a pest is totally up to you and your personal preferences. Mice are a good example. Some people keep mice as pets, but most people consider mice to be a pest.

In the case of lizards, the colourful iguanas are often seen as a pet. The small, tiny house lizards that come into your home uninvited and can cause health hazards, can be seen as a pest.

Lizards are attracted to tiny insects. If you have lots of flies and mosquitoes in your home, lizards may start to appear. If there are no such small insects around, you will most likely not see a lizard either.

Lizards are attracted to dark and warm spaces. So, you’ll often find them behind doors, in cupboards and on the walls and ceilings. Standing water also attracts lizards.

There are several simple things you can do to get rid of lizards:

• Keep your home clean
• Cover food to prevent flies, which attract lizards
• Seal windows and doors

Table Of Contents

• Scorpion biology
• Types of scorpions
• Do scorpions bite?
• Are scorpions poisonous?
• Are scorpions dangerous?
• How to spot a scorpion
• How scorpions can enter your home
• Pest prevention measures for scorpions
• Pest control measures for scorpions

Scorpions are arthropods that are related to spiders. Some features of scorpions are that they have a long tail with a stinger on the end and a set of pincers on the front of the body. In this article, we discuss some interesting and useful facts about scorpions. There are scorpions in Singapore along with other stinging pests such as bees, wasps, and hornets. Scorpions occur in many different types of habitats including deserts, but in Singapore, they are most often found inhabiting forested areas. 

Scorpions are predators that feed on other small creatures that they come across in the environment. Mostly they prey on insects and tiny arthropods, but larger-sized scorpions may even take small vertebrates such as lizards.

They have a flattened segmented body and jointed limbs. A scorpion also has four legs, a pair of pincers near the head area, and a tail with a stinger. The average size of a scorpion is about 6 cm. 

They breed during the warm season or year-round in the tropics. The mating process involves a complex courtship ritual. Scorpions can mate many times and the females have live births. The average number of offspring is 25.

There are many different types of scorpions (almost 2000 species of scorpions) found in many habitats around the world. In Singapore, the most important species of scorpions are listed below next to the family name:

Family Buthidae

• Lesser brown scorpion – Isometrus maculatus
• Long-tailed scorpion – Lychas scutilus

Family Chaerilidae

• Chaerilus rectimanus

Family Hemiscorpiidae

• Dwarf wood scorpion – Liocheles australasiae

Scorpions do not bite normally, instead their defense mechanism is to sting. You should avoid touching and picking up a scorpion because you risk receiving a painful sting that may be harmful to you.

Scorpions are not considered poisonous; however, all species are venomous to some extent. This means that they contain venom in their tail which they inject when they sting someone. The venom of a scorpion is a toxic substance that directly affects the nerves or blood cells. The exact type and potency of the venom vary depending on the specific species of scorpion. 

Scorpions can be deadly; they do cause over 3000 human fatalities a year world-wide. However, not all species are dangerous to humans. In many cases, the venom may not be dangerous for people. 

There are a few that are more harmful to people. The most dangerous scorpions are in the two scorpion families: Scorpionidae and Buthidae. They are responsible for almost all cases of human injury. 

Although Scorpionidae looks more intimidating since they have larger pincers, it is actually the Buthidae that are more venomous, even deadly at times. The Buthidae have smaller pincers and a thicker tail than the Scorpionidae but the venom they produce is much stronger.

Many scorpions do not kill humans when they sting them but the sting can cause pain and swelling. Another concern is the possibility of an allergic reaction that can even lead to anaphylaxis. 

The sting of any scorpion could cause anaphylaxis in vulnerable individuals. Anaphylaxis can quickly cause death, so it is best to rather avoid direct contact with scorpions. Even if you have never before had a dangerous allergic reaction it can still happen with any type of sting.

Scorpions are active at night and many show up under ultraviolet light, so using a blacklight is one way to spot them. They often hide under logs or fallen debris. In houses, you could potentially find them in crawl spaces and attics. Scorpions prefer darkened spaces in dwellings, such as cracks and joints where they can hide out during the day.

Scorpions can enter a dwelling through small cracks and holes. These insects are flat-bodied and can even crawl under doors, so having weather-stripping in place is a good idea.

These arthropods are predators that feed on other arthropods including insects like crickets. An infestation of crickets or other insects in your home may attract scorpions looking for food. You may not even know you have a scorpion in the home until you happen to spot one. 

It is not common to have many scorpions infesting a home. However, they can be dangerous to people and pets depending on what type they are.

Scorpions are usually simply directly killed by spraying them with insecticide. Fogging is not required unless you have a big infestation of some other type of pest like cockroaches. 

Always be careful using insecticides in the home, especially if you have pets and small children. 

Scorpions are arthropods that sting with their tail. The venom of many species is not a big concern to humans but pets and small children are at higher risk. Even though most species will not kill you it is wise to prevent scorpions from entering your home.

Table Of Contents

• Where Did Monkeypox Come From?
• Monkeypox Symptoms
• Complications of Monkeypox
• Monkeypox Diagnosis
• Monkeypox Treatment
• How Monkeypox is Transmitted
• Monkeypox Prevention

Monkeypox is one of the orthopoxviruses that can infect people and cause illness. Prior to 2022, monkeypox was rather limited in distribution, occurring in countries in Central Africa and West Africa. The most recent outbreak started in May 2019 with a single monkeypox case detected in Singapore.

The patient had traveled from Nigeria, where monkeypox is actually endemic. Monkeypox in Singapore has since been confirmed in more patients. A total of 15 men in Singapore have been confirmed as monkeypox cases. Read on to learn more about monkeypox.

Monkeypox was first identified in the 1970s in the Democratic Republic of Congo in Africa. The belief is that the virus spread from a mammal to a human at some stage. Monkeypox is, therefore, called a sylvatic zoonosis since the virus has spread from a natural animal host to humans.

Monkeypox can occur in a variety of mammals including rats, shrews, squirrels, hedgehogs, and anteaters. Scientists suspect that the virus was at some stage transmitted from a rodent to a human.

The signs of monkeypox appear anywhere from 7 days up to 21 days after exposure to the virus. Not all the symptoms are present in every infected person. The person stays contagious for up to a month when all the pustules should have scabbed over and fallen off.

The symptoms of monkeypox include the following:

• A rash that occurs on the face, chest, hands, and genitals. The rash consists of vesicles that form blisters. The vesicles can be itchy and also very painful.
• Fever of more than 38°C
• Chills
• Headache
• Swollen lymph nodes
• Muscle pain
• Respiratory signs such as a cough, a sore throat, and a stuffy nose

There are some dangerous complications that can occur in people who have monkeypox. These complications are listed below.

• Encephalitis
• Bronchopneumonia
• Corneal infection that can lead to blindness
• Death

Monkeypox can lead to death in anywhere from 1% to 10% of cases depending on the country where the outbreak occurs. The average worldwide death rate for monkeypox is about 3% to 6%. Individuals who have a compromised immune system, infants, and children are especially susceptible to severe illness and complications. 

Diagnosis of monkeypox is usually by blood tests and PCR. PCR is the best way to detect the virus and is better than immunology tests looking for antibodies. The infection is still less common than other rash-producing illnesses so doctors need to eliminate other potential causes of a person’s symptoms before assuming they have monkeypox. Travel history of the person and contact with individuals already diagnosed with monkeypox raises the level of suspicion that the person has the monkeypox infection. Molecular tests such as PCR can confirm the diagnosis, as previously mentioned.

Treatment is difficult since monkeypox is caused by a virus, which means antibiotics will not work. Supportive therapy and some antiviral medications can help manage a monkeypox infection. The antiviral tecovirimat has been used to treat some cases of monkeypox. 

Supportive therapy includes giving patients fluid and helping them keep their nutrition up. Many people do recover after a few weeks.

There are at least two vaccines that are somewhat helpful against monkeypox and can make symptoms less severe. The Ankara vaccine was developed for monkeypox in 2019 but it is not always easily available. 

People can catch monkeypox from eating uncooked bushmeat. A person can also become infected if bitten or scratched by an animal that is infected with monkeypox.

Transmission among people is by close physical contact. The virus spreads by contact with:

• body fluids such as saliva, semen, blood, fluid from blisters, and urine
• the monkeypox skin lesions
• articles of clothing and linen used by the infected person
• respiratory droplets

The virus can also spread from a mother to her fetus. This has resulted in fetal deaths. 

You can prevent catching monkeypox by following some simple rules outlined below.

• Avoid visiting areas where monkeypox is endemic, or if unavoidable, take extra precautions in those countries.
• Avoid close contact with people currently ill with monkeypox.
• Do not have unprotected sex because this is one way the disease is spread among people.
• Health workers need to use protective equipment and take care to avoid infection when treating people who are sick with monkeypox.

Monkeypox is a serious illness that can result in death. The symptoms are similar to many other illnesses meaning that diagnosis may be difficult initially. There are also limited treatment options for monkeypox, which is why your best strategy is to try to prevent becoming infected in the first place.