Komodo dragons are the biggest lizards on Earth, growing up to 10 feet long and weighing as much as a grown person. They live on only a few small Indonesian islands and they sit at the very top of the food chain there - hunting deer, pigs and water buffalo.
Scientists used to think Komodo bites infected prey with bacteria. We now know better: dragons actually have venom glands in their lower jaws. When they bite, they inject a venom that lowers blood pressure and stops blood clotting. The wounded prey starts to weaken and the dragon simply tracks it, sometimes for days, until it collapses.
Once it’s down, the dragon swallows huge chunks at a time - its jaw can unhook, and its stomach can stretch to nearly its whole body length. A single meal can be 80% of the dragon’s body weight. After that it can go weeks without eating again.
