Goanna in Australia likened goannas to the South American lizards.. Over time, the initial vowel sound was dropped. A similar explanation is used to link possum to the American opossum. Another possibility is that the name might have derived from the South African term for a monitor lizard, "leguaan", as the Cape of Good Hope was a popular refresher stop for immigrant ships to Australia from Britain. For a list of all monitor lizards of the genus, see Complete list of genus "Varanus". The following are found in Australia. For the most part, in common names, "goanna" and "monitor" are interchangeable.
Mintabie, South Australia based at Marla and run patrols in the area. A permit from the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara is required to access Mintabie, as the land is owned freehold by the resident Aboriginal people. Currently this is not being enforced because of unresolved issues. For State elections (i.e. to elect the Parliament of South Australia), a mobile polling booth is taken to Mintabie. Native animal species commonly found in and about Mintabie include the galah, thorny devil and netted dragon lizard and the larger lizard variety known as goanna. Mintabie, South Australia Mintabie is an opal mining community in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara