This velociraptor was photographed at Jurassic Park.
This water monitor was photographed on Gaya Island in Borneo.

Although mostly known for its beaches, my friend and I spent a couple of hours trekking along a neglected pathway through the island’s inland jungle. After spluttering through countless spider-webs, and getting a little too close for comfort to a venomous banded krait, we were delighted to arrive at the luxury five-star resort hidden on the far side of the island – which we promptly snuck into.

After devouring a woodfired pizza and cooling off with some snorkeling, we left our belongings in a hammock and went for a walk along the beach. After a few minutes, two monitor lizards strolled out in front of us from the jungle. One of them was ginormous, at least two metres long and one of the largest reptiles I had ever seen (second only to the prehistoric salt-water crocodiles of far north Queensland).

I sprinted back to grab my camera, but by the time I returned, the monstrous lizard had sleuthed back into the dense jungle. The remaining lizard found a place on the warm rocks, where it posed for photos in the sun until we decided to leave.

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Asian water monitor (Varanus salvator), Gaya Island, Borneo