One of the main highlights of visiting the remote islands of Komodo is meeting the komodo dragons face to face in their natural habitat. The tropical monsoon forest in Flores, Indonesia that consists of palm savannah and grasslands is where the komodo dragons love to stay in. The komodo dragons mainly live on the two big islands of Komodo National Park (Komodo Island and Rinca Island). We visited Rinca Island that day.
We arrived on Rinca Island one afternoon on our first day of liveaboard around Komodo. Even in the 21st century, it is not easy to get to this remote island. Rinca Island certainly looks like a real world of Jurassic Park. There is only basic infrastucture on the island with little sign of human settlement. We have to watch our step and look around carefully. That is why the guidance of professional park rangers is a must for every group of visitors.
It was easy to spot komodo dragons on Rinca Island. As soon as we arrived, we already found some of them relaxing right next to the ranger stations. They were all super chill and seemed to be all minding their own business. We were advised to stay quiet. Our ranger told us that they can make sudden attacks when feeling threatened. We were still freaked out, but relieved to see them not aggressive at all. Trust me, there was a true fear hiding behind our smiles in the first photo of this post!
Komodo Dragons Facts
They are the world’s largest living lizard, growing up to 3 meters long and weighing up to 100 kilograms.
They are considered to be direct descendant of the dinosaurs, and certainly the nearest creature to the dinosaurs that we still have alive today!
They have thick tough skin, long sharp claws, long muscular tails, long and forked tongues, and excellent eye sight, all adapted for fighting and catching prey.
They might look calm, but they can run very fast (up to 20 km/hour), swim, and they do have poisonous saliva that can cause death by infection with just a single bite!
They are carnivores and also cannibals. They can even eat their own children! Luckily, infant dragons are very agile, and quickly learn to escape the hungry adults by climbing trees.
There are several trekking adventures available through this island to discover the komodo dragons. We chose the medium track and spent about three hours on the island. We also spotted several buffalos and birds whilst on our trekking adventure, as well as getting a fantastic panorama of the island and bay from a lookout point.
Komodo National Park is one of the most exciting and unique locations in Indonesia. The park was declared a UNESCO World HeritageSite to protect the komodo dragons.
Are you interested in meeting komodo dragons in person? Do let me know what you think in the comments section below.
Hi @Lusianaa and thanks for tagging me. Great post and great photos. I saw the dragons atKomodo National Park. I believe that for obvious reasons the dragons are well fed before tourists arrive and they (the dragons) end up sleeping in the hot afternoon sun digesting their big feeds
Thanks @AdamGT and you are definitely right about that. I happened to see a ranger threw a piece of meat, but only few of them were interested. They turned back into their lazy comfort after they finished eating
Teh @Nyainurjanah , actually the trip took place in 2018. Of course I was scared, but turned out that they were very calm, not looking too scary because they were all well fed before the visitors came. However, it was such a thrilling experience!
I’ve heard the news too. Rinca Island is now temporarily closed for the development project. I have no idea what they are doing. I hope it doesn’t harm the komodo dragons.
Komodo dragons are fascinating creatures, and to be able to see them in their natural habitat was like a throwback to prehistoric times @TusharSuradkar
By the way, I haven’t watched ‘honey, I shrunk the kids’. What is the film about?
Amazing! What an impressive post! I have never seen komodo dragons but your post made me want to see them. I tried to search zoos that we can see Komodo dragons in Japan, unfortunately, it seems don’t exist now
Great post about the Komodo National Park @Lusianaa
These animals are very scary, especially when they are in freedom !
Your story has reminded me souvenirs from my last trip to Thailand because I got the chance meet a komodo there.
In fact, I was walking in the park, very relax. At one point, I heard some noice and I trun my face. I didn’t expect what I saw. It was a komodo in freedom.
As you can imagine, I was vey scary and I didn’t know what to do. The komodo was so closed to me. Lucky me he went away without attacking me.
It’s almost impossible to find them in the zoo. There were many attempts to exhibit komodo dragons, but the lifespan of them proved very short. Also, they can’t reproduce in captivity. So, come visit Indonesia to meet them! Meanwhile, have you seen the Street View photo on Rinca Island? I think you would enjoy it
Thank you for reading my post and sharing your story. I love collecting souvenirs, too! They preserve travel memories
Well, I’m not sure if what you saw in Thailand was a komodo dragon. Probably it was another species of monitor lizard As far as I know, komodo dragons are found in the wild only on a few islands in the Komodo National Park. However, it’s always a thrilling experience to meet wild animals in freedom.
Such an impressive post, @Lusianaa ! Thanks for sharing about this place. I never knew about it, neither did I know many facts about Komodo dragons. They sure seem scary!
When I visited Thailand early this year, I did see something similar. I wonder if these are komodo dragons? There are two in the picture below.
From your photo, I think they are Asian water monitor (varanus salvator) because they are smaller than komodo dragon (varanus komodoensis) and can be found outside the Komodo National Park. But, both of them are the member of monitor lizard (varanus) family. Hope it helps you a bit.
As far as I know, komodo dragons are found in the wild only on a few islands in the Komodo National Park. However, it’s always a thrilling experience to meet wild animals in freedom.