The Komodo Dragon

Classification and Range

Komodo dragons are also known as Komodo monitors, or by the local Indonesian name, "ora." These giant lizards belong to the family Varanidae, which includes 52 species of monitor lizards. All varanids belong to a single genus. Varanus includes very tiny lizards only a few inches long to the immense Komodo dragon.

Komodo dragons live on four southeastern Indonesian islands in the Lesser Sunda region: Flores, Gili Motang, Komodo and Rinca. As recent as the 1970s, their habitat also included the island of Padar.

Habitat

Komodo dragons inhabit hot, seasonally arid grasslands, savannas and monsoon forests. They live mostly in the lowlands, but have occasionally been found at elevations up to 1,967 feet (600 m).

Physical Characteristics

Male length: Commonly up to 9 feet (2.75m) long, including tail, although the record is slightly over 10 feet (3.05m).
Male weight: An exceptionally large male can weigh as much as 550 pounds (250 kg) after a large meal.
Females: Tend to be shorter and weigh less: up to 7.5 feet (2.3 m) long, and up to 150 pounds (68 kg).
*Males and females do not appear to be strikingly different, with the exception of size. A different arrangement of the scales around the genital opening is one distinguishing characteristic between the sexes. Adult Komodos are mostly black, green or gray, with patches of yellow-brown or white.

Life Span

Life span in the wild is estimated at up to 50 years, though few babies survive to adulthood. Komodo dragons have lived to be more than 25 years old in captivity; this is based on estimated age at acquisition.

Diet

In the wild: The primary prey for adult dragons is the Sunda deer, but they also eat birds, snakes, fish, crabs, snails, small mammals, pigs, water buffalo, eggs, wild horses and younger Komodos. Komodo dragons are also scavengers, and will eat almost any type of carrion.
At the zoo: Mainly rodents, NOT offered alive

Taken from:  Woodland Park Zoo presents The Komodo Dragon