Goodbye, dragon island

If someone tells you they recently returned from Komodo Island, where there a giant lizards known as Komodo dragons, don’t believe them. In fact, there was a time when Komodo dragons humbly posed for tourists wanting to check out these modern-day dinosaurs. Today, these dragons have secretly organized an uprising. For some unknown reason they have declared war on humanity and today are viciously attacking people.

Our reporters were among the last tourists that were ousted off the island by the indigenous Komodo dragon

 

The giant Komodo dragon is the only species of dinosaurs that survived extinction and live to this very day. Lizards and crocodiles, which are considered the descendants of dinosaurs, are contemporary reptiles that adjusted to modern-day life on Earth

 

Komodo dragons have always been and remain dinosaurs and even the structure of their brains is today unique. It is impossible to anger them, frighten them or attract their attention with a piece of meat. Looking at these creatures, it is possible to understand that the real life of dinosaurs differed much from that depicted in movies. No threatening postures or intimidating grins. In truth, these killing machines attack their victims mechanically.

Most tourists that visit the Komodo National Park travel from Bali, though it doesn’t matter from which of the islands of the Sunda Archipelago one flies to this park. The flight time (a few hours) and the price of an air ticket (US $30 – 40 return) are almost the same from any place you travel.

All air-taxis land on the island of Flores, not on Komodo. From Flores tourists are transported by boat to check out these pre-historic dragons. For some inexplicable reason, these boats are called yachts. Naturally, new tourists are attracted by this fallacious word and then they look with suspicion at these old tubs that Odesa natives call shalandas or flat-bottomed fishing boats.

Some of these tubs have a cockpit for a skipper and always have strange booths near the stern. Taking a closer look you will see notice that these booths are WCs with modern ceramic toilet sinks inside. Passengers sleep right on the deck aboard such “yachts” and skippers give them only ordinary quilted mattresses. For such a trip the skippers charge US $200 an hour.

The trip to Komodo takes 5-6 hours. People dressed in tarpaulin trousers and warm coats tourists meet ashore. They are local gamekeepers that proudly call themselves rangers. They take you to small houses on pylons. A couple of dragons lie in the shadows under the office. In fact, they are waiting for their prey, but the rangers only reveal this to tourists as they are embark on the boats back to the mainland.

When we visited Komodo, rangers knew their reserve would be closed soon, as attack incidents were getting increasingly frequent, so they used the last opportunity to earn tips. The night before we arrived one of the rangers went outside for a pee and was attacked by a dragon. The wounded ranger was taken to a hospital by sea. The ranger’s colleagues were sure his chances of survival were slim to none.

A ranger armed with a spear was our guide on the island. Besides a high-caliber machine gun, a spear is the only weapon of protection against a furious Komodo dragon. by pinning it to the ground. However, it is quite difficult to stop a 100 kilo reptile attacking at a speed of 20 km/h. The guide the best tactics  after seeing a dragon to run for the nearest palm tree and climb up it at the slightest hint of aggression on the part of the beast. Rubber plants are not recommended as each tree accommodates a dozens of snakes, at good half of which are poisonous.

Komodo dragons could care less about the size of their victims – be it a rat or buffalo. They are simply predators that attack anything that moves. They don’t go for the kill but merely rip out a chunk of flesh and go about their business. A victim poisoned by the  reptile’s saliva will suffer for a week before he dies. We came across a water buffalo with a huge rotting wound into which two human fists could fit. The animal was shivering and staggering. Four huge lizards were sitting motionless next to it.

 

Komodo dragons are the kings of the island. Even local monkeys are unusually quiet and fearing. At the slightest crack of a branch, they immediately clamber up a tree and hide behind its leaves. The birds are also silent. Everything is quiet like in a cemetery.

Komodo dragons managed to outlive all their prehistoric relatives thanks to their ability to reproduce without males, too. If a female meets a male she will not refuse coupling, but they are able to lay eggs without then and small lizards will hatch. The main thing for the little ones is to avoid confrontation with their mothers, as they may be devoured. This is precisely why dragons live in trees the first two years of their lives.

Darkness is quickly descending in the tropics and we must return to our boat. The view of the island is fantastic. By the way, Livingstone’s fruit bats also inhabit the island and are the rarest and largest species of these megabats. When thousands of them take to the skies, Count Dracula comes to mind. There are no sharks and other dangerous sea predators between the island and a reef on its edge, but it is not recommended to swim there as the reptiles are excellent swimmers.

In the morning we take off not even knowing we were the last tourists are on the island. The local park authorities decided to close the reserve as the reptile attacks got increasingly deadlier.

We continued our trip. On the horizon we saw Rincah Island, which was also inhabited by these giant lizards. They soon will start bring tourists there to meet them as local dragons remain relatively peaceful.