KOMODO A DRAGON FROM INDONESIA

By Zacky

Again there are others unique animal from Indonesia, That is Komodo. The Komodo dragon is the largest living lizard. The largest verified specimen reached a length of 10.3 feet (3.13 m) and weighed 366 pounds (166 kg). This may have included a substantial amount of undigested food. More typical weights for the largest wild dragons are about 154 pounds (70 kg). Although the Komodo can run briefly at speeds up to 13 mph (20 kph), its hunting strategy is based on stealth and power. They can spend hours in one spot, waiting for a deer, boar, goat, or anything sizable and nutritious.
The muscles of the Komodo's jaws and throat allow it to swallow huge chunks of meat with astonishing rapidity. Several movable joints, such as the intramuscular hinge, open the lower jaw unusually wide. Komodo dragons are in endangered status because of their limited range. It seem that the Dragons should be given any insurance such as pet insurance to protecting their existence in this world. It would appear that they have been hunted (legally and illegally) over the years, but not to the extent of decimating the population. Komodo National Park, established in 1980, and strict anti-poaching laws have helped protect the dragons, although illegal activity still takes place. Villagers sometimes poison carrion bait to reduce the population, much like ranchers of the American West poison sheep carcasses to rid the area of coyotes before Dutch colonial government instituted protection plans as early as 1915.