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Fantastic Komodo Dragons at Komodo Island

floresexplore.com: The Komodo dragon (Varanus komodoensis) is a species of lizard that inhabits the islands of Komodo, Rinca, Flores, and Gili Motang in Indonesia. A member of the monitor lizard family (Varanidae), it is the largest living species of lizard, growing to an average length of 2 to 3 metres (6.6 to 9.8 ft) and weighing around 70 kilograms (150 lb). Their unusual size is attributed to island gigantism, since there are no other carnivorous animals to fill the niche on the islands where they live, and also to the Komodo dragon’s low metabolic rate. As a result of their size, these lizards dominate the ecosystems in which they live. Although Komodo dragons eat mostly carrion, they will also hunt and ambush prey including invertebrates, birds, and mammals.

Mating begins between May and August, and the eggs are laid in September. About twenty eggs are deposited in abandoned megapode nests and incubated for seven to eight months, hatching in April, when insects are most plentiful. Young Komodo dragons are vulnerable and therefore dwell in trees, safe from predators and cannibalistic adults. They take around three to five years to mature, and may live as long as fifty years. They are among the rare vertebrates capable of parthenogenesis, in which females may lay viable eggs if males are absent.

Komodo dragons were discovered by Western scientists in 1910. Their large size and fearsome reputation make them popular zoo exhibits. In the wild their range has contracted due to human activities and they are listed as vulnerable by the IUCN. They are protected under Indonesian law, and a national park, Komodo National Park, was founded to aid protection efforts.

Komodo dragons are the world’s largest lizards. They can be found on only four islands – Komodo, Rinca, Gili Motang and Nusa Kode – in Komodo National Park, and a handful of small areas of northern and western Flores, just outside the Park. Less than 2500 of these giant lizards inhabit the Park’s dramatic landscape, and they do not exist anywhere else on earth. Komodo dragons, which were discovered by western science in 1910, are thought to have once lived over a much larger area. Growing pressure from human activities has reduced their habitats to the small refuges found today. Due to their extremely limited range, the Komodo dragon is considered to be endangered and in need of protection.

Komodo dragons owe their outsize proportions to the fact that there are no other large predators to compete with in the isolated area in which they occur. The phenomenon is known as island gigantism. The largest recorded specimen was an impressive 3.13 meters (10 feet 2 inches) in length; large dragons usually weigh up to 90 kg (198 pounds). The largest Komodo dragon ever measured weighed 165.9 kilograms (365 pounds), including undigested food. Female Komodo dragons rarely grow over 2.5 meters (7 feet 6 inches) in length. Scientists believe that Komodo dragons can live up to 50 years, maybe longer.

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