Komodo dragon  (Varanus komodoensis)

The Komodo dragons are the largest lizards in the world (2), and with their ancient appearance and evocative name they conjure up the stuff of legends. The heavy-set body is long with stocky legs and a long muscular tail; the scaly skin is greyish-brown all over (2). Dragons from the island of Flores however, are earthen-red in colour with a yellow head (6). Juveniles have a more striking pattern with very variable combinations of bands and speckling in yellow, green, grey and brown (2). Komodos have a well-developed sense of smell and their long, forked yellow tongue resembles the mythical, fire-breathing dragons of their name.

Found on the island of Komodo in Indonesia, from which they have received their common name; these dragons are also found on the neighbouring islands of Rinca and Flores (6).

The three islands where Komodo dragons live are all volcanic; they inhabit the lower monsoon forests and savannah up to about 700 metres above sea level (6).

Adult Komodo dragons are generally solitary, although groups may gather around a kill. They are powerful predators and their voracious appetite has further fuelled their ferocious image. Both carrion and live prey are consumed; adults ambush deer, water buffalo and wild pigs, and carcasses can be detected from up to 10 km away (6). The large powerful jaws tear at prey and large amounts can be eaten with surprising speed, only a small percentage of the kill is discarded (3). Komodo dragons can eat up to 80% of their own body weight at one time. The dragon's saliva can contain uf to 50 different types of bacteria, probably as a result of eating carrion (6). The bite is therefore highly infectious, and even if the attacked prey escapes it is likely to die within the week of blood poisoning (3).

The mating season occurs between May and June (6); males compete for access to receptive females by wrestling, rearing-up on their hind legs supported by their thick, muscular tail (3). In July and August, females lay and then incubate their clutch of around 25 eggs in depressions dug into the ground (2). Eggs incubate for up to nine months before hatching (6). Juveniles are extremely vulnerable to predation and spend their first year of life in the relatively protected habitat of the trees (5). Young dragons will feed on snakes, lizards and rodents (2).

The population of Komodo dragons today is estimated to be a mere fraction of its size 50 years ago (2). Causes of this decline are widespread habitat loss throughout the region, a loss of prey species and hunting (2). No Komodo dragons have been seen on the island of Padar since the 1970s, the result of widespread poaching of the deer that constitute their chief prey source (3).

Komodo and surrounding islands lie within the Komodo National Park (3). Law has protected these dragons since the 1930s (2), and international trade is prohibited by their listing on Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) (4). An important tourist trade has sprung-up around these spectacular creatures, bringing over 18,000 visitors to the area each year; it is hoped that this economic incentive will help to safeguard the future of these awesome dragons (3).

For more information on the Komodo dragon see:
Scientific American:
http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?articleID=000EFE16-865C-1CD6-B4A8809EC588EEDF&pageNumber=1&catID=2

Authenticated (7/7/03) by Kevin Buley. Curator of Lower Vertebrates & Invertebrates, Chester Zoo.
http://www.chesterzoo.org