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ZooNooz Article - march 2004
Dragons of Komodo
They have razor-sharp teeth and can eat up to 80 percent of their body weight in a single meal. TERRY BOYLAN re-acquaints us with the fabulous Komodo Dragons.
Photograph Jeff Grant.
The largest lizards in the world,
Komodo Dragons were virtually
unknown outside the lesser Sunda
Islands of the then Dutch West
Indies prior to 1912.
Komodo Dragons are thought to be the
source of Chinese legends
and are still featured prominently in
folklore and religion.
In addition to the 160 squarekilometre
Komodo National Park of
Indonesia, these giant monitor
lizards (related to Australian
goannas) also occur on the nearby
islands of Padar, Rinca, and their
neighbouring islets and the western
tip of Flores. Maps of ancient
mariners had notations such as
"Here be dragons" dotted
throughout the islands of what is
now Malaysia and Indonesia,
suggesting that at one time they
may have been more widespread.
Komodo Dragons |
Komodo Dragons were virtually
unknown outside the lesser Sunda
Today only a few thousand
animals remain and the species is
classified as endangered.
Taronga Zoo's involvement with
Komodos began in 1963 with the
arrival of two animals - a male and
a female, about 2.4 metres in length
- captured by Indonesian troops on
the island of Komodo and presented
to the Australian Government as a
gift from President Sukarno.
No recordings of the weight and
size of these animals remain, but a
contemporary newspaper account
put their length at about nine feet
(three metres) and went on to
record that "on the voyage [by ship
to Taronga]...they ate 30 fowls and
more than 300 eggs". Another newspaper account states both
were "7 foot 6 inch, 300-pound
monsters".
In 1967 the female, although in good condition, died from septicaemia caused by a heavy parasite burden.
Myth and exaggeration seem to
have characterised most accounts
of Komodo Dragons since the first
recorded description of the species
in 1912 by Dutch zoologist P.A.
Ouwens. Ouwens wrote of repeated
accounts by Indonesian locals of a
six- to seven-metre-long lizard
which they called 'boeaja darat'
(land crocodile).
However, it is interesting to
note, given the mythical
connotation of the word 'dragon',
that only one Komodo Dragon
longer than three metres has ever
been recorded - a 3.3 metre male held at St Louis Zoo in the 1930s.
Yet the name 'dragon' is apt.
Newly caught animals can be
dangerous and there is an
unsubstantiated report of a keeper
being bitten soon after the arrival of
the original animals at Taronga. A
1963 newspaper photograph of the
then Director of the Zoo, Sir Edward
Hallstrom, shows him warily patting
one of the lizards, but by the time I
started at the zoo in 1966, these
same two Komodo Dragons were
completely tame and enjoyed being
scratched, particularly around their
eyes and eyelids. (This is an effective
calming trick and is still employed
today with our one resident animal.)
In 1967 the female, although in
good condition, died from
septicaemia caused by a heavy
parasite burden. The amoebic
organisms responsible are common
in captive Komodo Dragons, so as a
preventative measure the remaining
animal, Keith, was put on a course of
medication.
At the time of his death in 1987,
40-year-old Keith had been in
captivity 24 years, longer than any
other Komodo Dragon - a record yet
to be broken! Given that a Komodo's
lifespan is between 30 and 50 years,
it seems old age simply caught up
with him.
They are also carrion feeders and have a cocktail of pathogens present in their saliva which can cause any wound from a bite to turn septic.
Our present Komodo, Tuka - 2.7
metres long and weighing 90kg - arrived in 1991 from Ragunan Zoo,
Jakarta, after being caught as a
juvenile in 1983. His body colours
are cream, yellow and tan - unusual
for Dragons from Komodo Island
which are a more sombre rusty
brown, but common in animals from
Flores where he was captured.
Adult Komodo Dragons in the
wild are capable of consuming
gargantuan meals and are known to
ambush and kill large prey including
goats, boars, buffalos and deer and
even (rarely) humans! Their eyesight
and hearing are excellent and, with
their curved and serrated teeth and
long claws, they need only wound a
large animal before it succumbs.
They are also carrion feeders
and have a cocktail of pathogens
present in their saliva which can cause any wound from a bite to turn
septic. A large animal may take
several days to die and the Komodo
will track it down, using its forked
tongue to pick up the scent. A smelly
carcass will also attract other Dragons in the vicinity to what can
become a feeding free-for-all.
Komodo Dragons |
The opening of Serpentaria in
1995 enabled us to demonstrate the
single-mindedness of these animals
when it comes to food. For the short
trip from his old enclosure near the
zoo's top entrance to the new exhibit
in Serpentaria, we decided to walk
Tuka through the zoo (before the
public were admitted!) instead of the
customary crating up in a box. This
was accomplished by one keeper
walking in front of him with a large
hunk of meat, frustratingly just out
of reach, and other keepers bringing
up the rear, equipped with capture
gear - just in case!
The operation was a great
success but we were all relieved
when the Dragon was safely in his enclosure as his patience was
beginning to wear thin.
Plans are under way to obtain at
least one female for our male. These
impressive ambassadors will help us
consolidate our links with their
home country, Indonesia.
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