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The Komodo dragon is also sometimes known as the Komodo monitor or the Komodo Island monitor in scientific literature, [14] although these names are uncommon. To the natives of Komodo Island , it is referred to as ora , buaya darat ('land crocodile'), or biawak raksasa ('giant monitor').
The Komodo Biosphere Reserve and National Park is situated between Flores and Sumbawa in Indonesia. It is renowned for its population of about 5,000 giant lizards, called 'Komodo dragons' (Varanus komodoensis). They exist nowhere else in the world and are of significant interest to scientists studying the theory of evolution. [1]
The Komodo dragon is significantly slower, reaching speeds of just 5–6 m/s (16–20 ft/s), although that is enough for it to chase goats and deers, which it mostly preys on. [15] Being the largest true monitor, Megalania is yet slower, with its estimated top speed no more than 3 m/s (9.8 ft/s). [16]
The adult length of extant species ranges from 20 cm (7.9 in) in some species such as Varanus sparnus, to over 3 m (10 ft) in the case of the Komodo dragon, though the extinct megalania (Varanus priscus) may have reached lengths of more than 7 m (23 ft).
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Komodo dragons are the largest lizard in the world — and they're pretty dangerous too.
Varanus includes the Komodo dragon (the largest living lizard), crocodile monitor, savannah monitor, the goannas of Australia and Southeast Asia, and various other species with a similarly distinctive appearance.
The new arrivals mark the zoo's first ever successful hatching of Komodo dragons.