There are approximately 5000 dragons in the wild. Due to their highly specialized husbandry requirements, Komodo Dragons have been successfully maintained in captivity only for the past two decades. There are approximately 50 in the United States, many of which are the result of captive breeding programs at several American zoos.

Their diet consists of rodents, fish, snakes, wild goats and pigs, and deer. However, they will pretty much eat whatever they can catch or get a good bite into, which includes a foolhardy tourist when the opportunity arises.

Young dragons are brightly patterned and are more delicately built. They spend most of their youth in trees and descend to the ground only when they are large enough to avoid being eaten by larger dragons. Adult female dragons can be up to 7.5 feet long. The males are much larger reaching 10 feet in length and can weigh up to 300 pounds.

Our male Komodo Dragon was born in September of 1998. He is now 8 feet long and weighs around 150 pounds.

The Komodo Dragon is one of the most intelligent of all reptiles and has senses far more advanced than other lizards. Their vision and sense of smell are highly sophisticated. Dragons readily distinguish different keepers and even different clothing worn by their keepers.

Komodo Dragons are NOT venomous. However, wild dragons do have a large amount of potent bacteria in their mouths. They have enormous serrated teeth that can inflict a terrible bite. Death can come from a Komodo bite in two different ways.

A bad bite can cause the victim to simply bleed to death. In 1931 a 14 year old boy was bitten on the buttocks and bled to death in 30 minutes.

The bacteria in a dragon's mouth can lead to fatal gangrenous infections. This enables dragons to feed on larger prey like water buffalo weighing over 1000 pounds. A large dragon will bite a buffalo that wanders too close. The bite is powerful enough to break the water buffalo's leg in addition to infecting the animal with bacteria. The lizard then follows the buffalo for several days until it dies of the infection. Once the creature is dead, monitors from miles away will be able to smell it and will congregate to feed. Up to a dozen dragons will partake in the ensuing feeding frenzy. In 1947 a policeman from a nearby island attempted to pet a large dragon. It lunged up and literally tore out his bicep. He died of infection a week later.

More than a dozen people have been killed by dragons in the past 20 years. Other recent well documented Komodo attacks include a French tourist killed in 1986. The feeding frenzy left only his blood-stained shoes. In 1989 a German tourist was killed by dragons. All that was ever found of him was his mangled glasses.