Komodo dragons use venom to kill prey

The world's largest lizard, Komodo dragon, has venom in the mouth to paralyze its prey. This finding suggests they are far more dangerous than many other reptiles.

A Komodo dragon.

After biting their prey, Komodo dragons often let them run and not chase. However, the dragon-bitten animals always die from continuous bleeding. At that time, the new dragon ate the prey. Because prey does not die right away, many scientists believe that the largest lizard on the planet has no venom. Instead, the bacteria in their mouths help them prevent the clotting of their prey.

Upon receiving news of a Komodo dragon at the Singapore Zoo dying of severe illness, scientists at the University of New South Wales (Australia) decided to find out if it was poisonous. They brought resonance imaging equipment from Singapore to study the animal's mouth. Holograms show that there are venom in the mouth of Komodo dragon and poisonous glands.

"The venom in Komodo dragon's mouth has a very strong virulence, like the poison of many snakes. When they bite, the poison will follow the saliva into the prey's body. " Stretching the prey will die after blood runs out," said Stephen Wroe, a member of the research team.

Until now, the scientific community believed that there were only two species of lizards with poison. It is a snake skin lizard and Gila monster lizard. They are distributed in Mexico and the southern states of the United States.

Komodo dragons live in Indonesia. Adults can be more than 3 meters long and weigh up to 70 kg. Their main food is mammals, reptiles and birds. In some cases they attack people. The ability of the dragon to bite is much weaker than the same size crocodiles. With a number of thousands of animals across the planet, Komodo dragons are among the most endangered species.