Some Obscurish facts
#1531
The Komodo Dragon is the largest known lizard in the world. Males can reach lengths exceeding three meters and weigh over 125 kg. Females are smaller. The Dragon is a member of the monitor lizard family. There are less than 5,000 dragons in the wild, of which only a few hundred are breeding females. The dragons are carnivorous and can bring down prey much larger than themselves, including human beings. In the wild, the Komodo Dragon lives on only four islands: Komodo, Rintja, Padar, and Flores. Padar and Rintja are official nature reserves for both the lizard and its prey. Commercial trading in dragons or their skin is illegal under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species. Do lizards larger than the Komodo Dragon still exist? Fossils from Queensland, Australia of Megalania prisca demonstrate that this much larger cousin of the Komodo Dragon lived as recently as 20,000 years ago. Megalania reached a length of nearly seven meters and a weight of 450 kg. Occasional reports of giant lizards from Australia lead some to suggest that Megalania may not be extinct. The largest known monitor lizard in Australia is Varanus giganteus which reaches a length of two meters and a weight of sixteen kilograms. Giganteus is thus much smaller than the Komodo Dragon and much much smaller than Megalania. Other cryptids which may turn out to be giant lizards include Mokele-mbembe, said to inhabit the rivers of the African Congo; the Buru, said to inhabit swampy regions in the Himalayan plateau near Assam, and the Mushrushu or Sirrush, a reptilian creature depicted on the Ishtar Gate of Babylon.
The Komodo Dragon is the largest known lizard in the world. Males can reach lengths exceeding three meters and weigh over 125 kg. Females are smaller. The Dragon is a member of the monitor lizard family. There are less than 5,000 dragons in the wild, of which only a few hundred are breeding females. The dragons are carnivorous and can bring down prey much larger than themselves, including human beings. In the wild, the Komodo Dragon lives on only four islands: Komodo, Rintja, Padar, and Flores. Padar and Rintja are official nature reserves for both the lizard and its prey. Commercial trading in dragons or their skin is illegal under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species. Do lizards larger than the Komodo Dragon still exist? Fossils from Queensland, Australia of Megalania prisca demonstrate that this much larger cousin of the Komodo Dragon lived as recently as 20,000 years ago. Megalania reached a length of nearly seven meters and a weight of 450 kg. Occasional reports of giant lizards from Australia lead some to suggest that Megalania may not be extinct. The largest known monitor lizard in Australia is Varanus giganteus which reaches a length of two meters and a weight of sixteen kilograms. Giganteus is thus much smaller than the Komodo Dragon and much much smaller than Megalania. Other cryptids which may turn out to be giant lizards include Mokele-mbembe, said to inhabit the rivers of the African Congo; the Buru, said to inhabit swampy regions in the Himalayan plateau near Assam, and the Mushrushu or Sirrush, a reptilian creature depicted on the Ishtar Gate of Babylon.