Posted on 02/06/2013 4:21:47 PM PST by nickcarraway
A park official says two people have been hospitalized after being attacked by a giant komodo dragon that wandered into the office of a wildlife park in eastern Indonesia.
An official at Komodo National Park, Heru Rudiharto, said Wednesday the 6 1/2-foot-long komodo dragon attacked a park ranger after walking into the office on Tuesday. It then attacked another park employee who came to help him. Both were badly bitten and were evacuated to a hospital on Bali Island.
Endangered Komodo dragons can grow longer than 10 feet. Fewer than 4,000 are believed to be alive. They are found in the wild primarily on the eastern Indonesian islands of Komodo, Padar and Rinca.
According to National Geographic, komodo dragons "will eat almost anything, including carrion, deer, pigs, smaller dragons, and even large water buffalo and humans."
In 2009, two Komodo dragons mauled a fruit-picker to death in eastern Indonesia.
I agree.
Youse guys are right! Although I take it that the venom is a fairky recent discovery. Hard to keep up with everything!
“The Komodo dragon has a very dangerous bite, and it is venomous (not poisonous).
For years it was believed that the danger of a Komodo dragon’s bite was due not to venom, but to bacteria that live on its teeth. Recent research, however, has discovered that the bite of the Komodo dragon delivers a powerful venom which actually thins the blood, increasing blood flow and creating a state of shock in the victim. The sharp, serrated teeth of a komodo dragon are used to open a gaping wound in its prey, enabling the venom to flow easily.
The discovery of venom glands in the Komodo dragon challenges the previous assumption that fatal bites were due to the consumption of carrion (rotting things), and the resultant growth of toxic bacteria in the mouths of the lizards. Infections by these organisms would still be a serious factor in treating a bite wound. Komodo dragons do not usually attack people, preferring other game such as deer. But there are documented cases of them stalking and killing human beings.”
I would empty the (high-capacity) magazine into it.
Bob: The Komodo dragon is the world's largest living lizard. It's a ferocious carnivore. It's found on the steep-sloped island of Komodo in the lesser Sunda Chain of the Indonesian Archipelago and the nearby islands of Rinja, Padar, and Flores. And one swipe of the Komodo dragon's tail can render an enemy senseless.
Kills with one bite: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q7CQInAXoqY
Found one of these at my front door once. He didn’t attack me, but did say that he needed “about tree fitty”. Don’t know what that was all about....
...and babies, they love to eat babies.
That reminds me, the first thing I did when I moved out of my parents home and into my own apartment was to leave the front door open, kept my shoes on and took showers till I ran out of hot water...........I missed mom's laundering tho.
Don’t work at Komodo National Park if you don’t want to be bit by a Komodo, just like you shouldn’t name your kid Lou Gehrig if you don’t want them to get Lou Gehrig disease!
(obscure comedic reference)
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