Asian Scientist (Jun. 27, 2013) – A team led by Australian researchers has revealed that the fearsome Komodo dragon is a victim of bad press.
Komodo dragon bites had long been believed to be fatal because of toxic bacteria in the reptiles’ mouths.
But research by the team has found that the mouths of Komodo dragons are surprisingly ordinary and the levels and types of bacteria do not differ from any other carnivore.
“Komodo dragons are actually very clean animals,” said Associate Professor Bryan Fry, a leader of the study.
“After they are done feeding, they will spend 10 to 15 minutes lip-licking and rubbing their head in the leaves to clean their mouth. The inside of their mouth is also kept extremely clean by the tongue.”
In fact, it seems that the water buffalo’s poor hygiene is responsible for perceptions about deadly toxic bacteria in the dragons.
Komodo dragons evolved in Australia but now populate the islands of Indonesia where they prey on water buffalo, pigs and deer.
Attacks on pigs and deer were extremely successful, with about 75 per cent bleeding out within 30 minutes and a further 15 per cent dying within three to four hours from venom in the salivary glands of the Komodo dragons.
In contrast, water buffalo almost always escape, but with deep wounds to the legs.
“The water buffalo follow their instincts and seek shelter in warm water that is usually stagnant, filled with water buffalo faeces and flourishing with bacteria, particularly nasty anaerobic types,” said Professor Fry.
According to the researchers, it is when the water buffalo go stand in the toxic water with gaping wounds that they get infected.
Any pathogenic bacteria found in komodo mouths were simply the remnants from when the dragons drank from sewage filled watering holes. The dragons do not have enough bacteria in their mouths to infect an injured water buffalo, the researchers say.
The team now plans to conduct tests on the watering holes to prove that they are the source of any infection to water buffalo.
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Source: University of Queensland; Photo: wwarby/Flickr.
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