Skip to main content

Komodo Dragon

Komodo Dragons are found exclusively on the Lesser Sunda Islands of Indonesia (including the obvious Komodo Island.) They are the heaviest lizards on Earth, weighing upwards of 300lbs. They can grow as long as 10ft, with males being longer and heavier than females.

(Image Source)
One of the most amazing things about the Komodo Dragon is it's method of hunting and killing prey. They are extremely opportunistic feeders, and will eat pigs, deer, and even humans and water buffalo. They are also cannibalistic and fill feed on young Dragons.

On a side note, young Komodo Dragons must immediately reach the safety of trees after hatching, because adults will eat them without a second thought. The young Dragons will remain in the trees for about four years, until they are large enough to truly fend for themselves on the ground.

Anyway, back to hunting. Komodo Dragons hunt by waiting patiently for a potential meal to walk by. Then they strike out with their claws and teeth. If they kill the prey during the initial attack, they are able to devour it with amazing speed. One Komodo was observed eating an entire 90lb pig in just 20 minutes.

Now here comes the really interesting part. If a Komodo Dragon is unable to kill its prey on the initial assault they will simply follow it around and wait for it to die. The saliva of a Komodo Dragon contains 50 different strains of bacteria, which will afflict and poison the blood of the animal they attacked. In only a matter of days the animal will be dead and the Komodo can feed. Because of their keen sense of smell, other Dragons might take part in the stalking, and multiple individuals will fight over the kill when it eventually expires.



Komodo Dragons are endangered. Their habitats have diminished and now they share the same hunting prey as humans. There are between 3,000 and 5,000 Komodo Dragons living in the wild.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Burmese Peacock

Polyplectron bicalcaratum Burmese Peacocks are also referred to as Grey Peacock-Pheasants, which is probably a more apt name, as they are not actually Peacocks... though they do belong to the same family. At any rate, they share some physical resemblances to Peacocks- most notably the eyes on their tail feathers. Burmese Peacocks are the national birds of Myanmar, which was called Burma until 1989, though some still refer to it as such. The birds live in several other Southeast Asian countries as well, and are divided into four subspecies. The species as a whole is listed as being of Least Concern , because they have a large range and population size. It unfortunately appears that they may be declining in number, but it is a slow descent that does not yet meet the vulnerability thresholds. The birds are listed under CITES Appendix II, because they can be kept in captivity and grabbing individuals from the wild could become problematic for the species. IUCN Stat...
3 comments
Read more

Bornean Orangutan

The Bornean Orangutan is one of two extant Orangutan species in the world. It is the third largest primate (after Gorillas) and is the largest primarily tree-dwelling animal in the world. Males are substantially larger than females, and average at around 165lbs. Bornean Orangutans are largely solitary. A handful might live within a small range but they will seldom interact with one another. Males and females only meet up to breed, which happens only once every several years. A young Orangutan will stay with it's mother for about five years, and the females tend to go about eight years between births. That is the longest interim period of any animal! Sadly, the Bornean Orangutans are in a lot of trouble. They need large forests in order to thrive, and deforestation and habitat degradation has left many homeless. They are also hunted for meat and for traditional medicines. Conservation areas are being established to help these guys in the wild, and it is believed that there are a...
59 comments
Read more

Four!

For anyone who was counting, yesterday was our birthday-- four years! Four years filled with animals from A to Z, more than 1,100 of them! I can't thank my readers enough, it's been wonderful! And in celebration of that milestone... I'm taking a break. Hopefully not forever, but for a little bit at least. In the mean time I plan on getting a new layout out, along with some updates to some of the older articles. I'll post updates here and on the Facebook page, I'm also brainstorming some new animal-related projects, so keep an eye out! Thanks again for four awesome years!
18 comments
Read more