Komodo (id. Pulau Komodo) is one of the 17,508 islands of Indonesia. It is best known as the natural habitat of one of the largest lizards on the planet, the "komodo dragon" and many other endemic species. The island is part of the Lesser Sunda archipelago and Komodo National Park. Although of volcanic origin, there are no active volcanoes on the island today, although earthquakes are very common. The area of the island is 390 km². The number of inhabitants is slowly growing, in 1928 the island had only 30, and today it has about 2,000 inhabitants.
During 8 months of the year, there is a dry climate with high temperatures and light precipitation, while the rest of the year is characterized by monsoon rains. Temperatures range between 17º C and 34º C. From November to March, a westerly wind blows, forming large waves along the entire west coast, and from April to October a dry wind, which forms large waves on the south side of the island. The dry climate caused poor vegetation, mostly of the xerophilous type.
1 | The Komodo Dragons Approximately reaching 3 meters in length and weighing over 70kg, the Komodo Dragon (or otherwise known as Varanus Komodoensis), is the world’s largest lizard and reptile. The dragons are identified by their massive size, flat heads, bowed legs, long thick tails, and fork-shaped tongues. Komodos can run and swim up to 20kph and have an excellent vision where it can see objects from 300m away. A fierce predator, these reptiles are carnivores and can eat 80% of their weight in one feeding. The Komodo can consume very large prey such as water buffalo, deer, carrion, pigs and even humans. It has a unique way of killing by biting its prey - especially when it is a large water buffalo, - surrounding it in a group then wait patiently until the poison in its saliva has slowly killed its victim. After which it completely shreds apart and devoured with bones and all. If the prey escapes, it will usually die within 24 hours due to the poisoning of the blood that comes from the venomous and bacteria-ridden saliva.
Only found in the world within the Komodo National Park and the surrounding Flores island, these Jurassic and majestic creatures are the park’s star attraction. Although awesome to see, visitors are urged to keep a distance and exercise caution. Always be accompanied by a ranger and follow all the ranger’s instructions when in the proximity to these dangerous lizards, although they may look pretty docile, 2 | Climate and Geography The climate in the Komodo National Park is one of the driest in Indonesia. The national park experiences little to no rainfall for approximately 8 months of the year and is heavily impacted by monsoonal rains. Daily temperatures during the dry season between May to October average around 40. Due to this dry climate, the land is rough with stony hills and plant species are limited to grass, shrubs, orchids, and trees. In contrast, the marine area has a rich and colorful landscape. The national park falls within the Asia Pacific Coral Triangle and is full of a variety of seagrass beds, colorful coral reefs, and dense mangrove forests. 3 | Land and Marine Fauna Aside from the magnificent Komodo Dragon, The Komodo National Park is the habitat of various other land and sea creatures. Visitors can witness these intriguing animals roaming freely in their natural outdoor settings.
Terrestrial fauna that can be found here includes a diversity of reptiles, mammals, and birds. This includes but isn’t limited to 12 snake species, 9 lizard species, various frogs, the Timor deer (the main prey of the Komodo), horses, water buffalos, wild boars, the endemic Rinca rat, fruit bats, the orange footed scrub fowl and over 40 species of birds.
The marine fauna is astonishingly diverse and includes over 1,000 fish species, 70 types of sponges, 10 types of dolphins, 6 types of whales, dugongs, green turtles and various types of sharks, huge manta rays, stingrays, marine reptiles and crustaceans and occasionally migrating whales.