A shared video has attracted the attention of the online community when the Komodo dragon knocks down a living monkey to the horror of viewers.
In the video, the poor animal can be seen being bitten on the neck by the Komodo dragon, struggling and struggling. However, its resistance was completely ineffective against the modern-day “descendant of dinosaurs” lizard.
It can be seen that the monkey is not small in size. However, instead of tearing up its prey like in most cases, the Komodo dragon decided to “swallow” the enemy the same way a python would.
The monkey’s legs were suspended from the dragon’s jaws after its upper body was crushed in the predator’s mouth. In about half a minute, the Komodo dragon, with its sharp crocodile-like teeth, swallowed its lunch.
The Komodo dragon (scientific name: Varanus komodoensis) is a large lizard commonly found on the islands of Indonesia. They are a member of the Varanidae family, and are the largest living lizards, with a maximum body length of 3m, and a weight of about 70kg.
Komodo dragons have a very similar appearance to crocodiles, such as a round snout, scaly skin, strong limbs and sharp claws and a long tail. They use all four limbs to crawl to the ground like reptiles.
Despite their large body, they run quite fast, can reach speeds of about 20km/h. In addition, they can also dive under water 5m deep, and climb trees like other lizards.
Komodo dragons are carnivores, with their preferred prey being invertebrates, birds, herbivores, and even mammals. Scientific literature suggests that they have venom in the form of proteins, secreted from two glands in the lower jaw.
Their saliva is red and contains 50 different types of bacteria. Just one bite of this species can poison the prey and then die before being swallowed by the dragon.
As noted, Komodo dragons are voracious eaters, being able to eat up to 80% of its body weight in one meal. After eating, Komodo dragons often have to drag themselves to a sunny location to speed up digestion. The reason is because the food in their stomachs can rot and poison dragons if left for too long.