Varanus acanthurus brachyurus Sternfeld 1919

First described in 1919 by German zoologist Richard Sternfeld. In a cladistic analysis of mtDNA by Fitch et al (2006), samples of V. a. brachyurus failed to form a monophyletic clade in respect to other forms of V. acanthurus. Not recognised as a distinct subspecies in Wilson & Swan (2010).