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Komodo
National Park has widely known with the home
of the giant lizard Komodo Dragon - which has just
declare to be one of the latest heritage of the
world. Komodo National Park is nestled
between eastern Sumbawa and western Flores lie three tiny
grass-covered islands Komodo, Padar and Rinca, which
together form the Komodo National Park, a protected wildlife
reserve.
This is the home of the giants lizard known as the
"Komodo Dragon" it was thought to be a myth until
the turn of the century, when fishermen who were forced by
a storm to take shelter on Komodo sight the monsters.
Explore the under water live and its ecosystems
which has well known as the best diving site in
the world. From beautiful coral, reefs, thousands
sort of fishes to the crystal water and beautiful
beach are await to visit. Komodo dragons live in one of the driest area in Indonesia, where there
are few permanent water sources.

This
is the world's largest monitor lizard, varanus Komodoensies,
when full grown it measures up to 3.13 meters (10feet 2
inches) in length and
weight anything up to 165.9kg (365pounds). They are fearsome creatures with
enormous jaws, squat muscular legs and sharp claws. Preying on
live deer, goats and wild pigs, they lie in wait
hidden in the long grass
Young dragons spend most of their time in trees but dragons over 1.5m
long can not climb well. Dragons over 2 meters are too heavy to climb
trees. The Komodo dragons are constantly regulating their body
temperatures. In the early morning, they must warm-up their bodies in
the sun. If their body temperature drops too low, the food in their
stomach can rot and cause regurgitation or even death. However, the
Komodo dragon's body temperature must not exceed 42 degrees celcius
(108 degrees Fahrenheit). When it is too hot, they must rest and seek
shade to prevent their body from over-heating. Dragons are most active
from 6 - 10am in the morning and again from 3 - 5pm in the afternoon.
During the rainy season. Komodo dragons stay in burrows if they are
too cold. Komodo dragons sleep at night because it is usually too cool
for them to be active. They will sleep where they will not loose too
much heat at the edge of the savanna and monsoon forest or in burrows.
The average sleeping burrow is only 75cm to 1.25m in length. The
Komodo dragons will use the burrows of rodents, palm civets, wild
board, porcupine (on Flores) and those made by other Komodo dragons.
Nesting burrows are about 2 meters long.
Fossils
bearing a strong resemblance have been unearths from chalk
deposits dating back 130 million years, about the end of
the age of Dinosaurs. The few inhabitants dwelling on
Komodo today have built their Kampong on stilts right next
to the sea, and survive by dishing, as the land is dry and
arid, almost impossible to cultivate. The water surroundings the
island are rich in colorful corals, fish and shellfish, but
there are nazardous rip tides and strong currents which
make diving too risk for the novice.
Dolphins,
whales and sea turtles are often seen in the straits between the
islands, and a rare species of giants seawater crocodile
has been sighted on isolated beach

POPULATION & HABITAT
There are about 3.300 Komodo dragons in the park and in Flores.
1996/97 surveys showed 1.687 Komodo dragons in Komodo island and 1.223
Komodo dragons in Rinca For every female, there are about 3 males.
Perhaps a small percentage of females is a response to keep the Komodo
dragon populations from growing too quickly. Komodo dragons are only
found in Komodo, Rinca, Gili Motang, and small part of north and west
Flores island. There are recently extict in Padar. Dragons can be
found almost everywhere on Komodo and Rinca. They can be found in the
monsoon forest, in the savanna, on the beach, in the mangrove swamps
and in burrows. Sometimes the younger one are found in the trees. The
Komodo dragon's range is mostly from sea level to 450m above sea
level. Their locations depends on their activity.

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