Komodo dragons are in fact, lizards, and they are by far the largest lizards on Earth.
These lizards can grow up to ten feet long (three meters), approximately the length of a small car. They’re heavy, too – they can weigh up to 154 pounds on average, but have been weighed up to 135 kilograms, which is approximately the same weight as a panda bear!
Komodo dragons are known for their notorious, venomous hunting strikes. It used to be believed that these lizards had various strains of bacteria in their saliva that killed prey, but this theory was discredited by the University of Queensland and it is now believed that they secrete venom proteins similar to that of venomous snakes.
Komodo dragons are only present on five Indonesian islands, and in no other country in the world. Four of these islands make up what is known as Komodo National Park, and the fifth island is that of Flores. The main island that is home to the largest amount of komodo dragons in the world is named after these lizards; it is so-named Komodo Island.
