Melissa+Romero-Komodo+Island+monitor


 * Komodo Island monitor (//Varanus Komodoensis//)**
 * Population:** 3,000 to 5,000 worldwide.

Location and Habitat
The Komodo Island Monitor in the volcanic Islands of Indonesia such as the Komodo, Rinca, and Padar Island. Their habitat is dry, srcublands in the tropical savannah foredts of the Komodo Islands. These bigs lizards are also found in beaches, ridgetops, and dry riverbeds. The Komodo Island Monitor was first documented in 1910, and in 1926 was when an American who went on an expedition to research the lizard named the species "dragons". The Komodo Island Monitor sometimes dig dens in order to protect themselves from the sun after they have been basking in it.


 * Niche**

The Komodo Island Monitor is known to be the largest lizard in the world. This fascinating lizard can reach up to ten feet in length and can weigh up to 300 pounds. When the Komodo Island Monitor is fairly, it has green with yellow and black bands on its scaly skin. As they get older, their skins turns into a more brownish grayish red in color and they lose their black and yellow bands. This endangered species has poor eye sight, and poor hearing which might be why part of their diet include dead animals. Though they have these set backs, they do have a good sense of smell, stealth, and patience that helps them when they hunt for their prey. The Komodo Island Monitor is carnivorous, and also feeds on dead animals. When it does hunt for food, it ambushes its prey, usually, pigs, wild boar, horses, or water buffalo. One fascinating thing about the Komodo Island Monitor, is that if their food does escape but the Komodo Island Monitor has already bitten its prey, the bacteria in the saliva of this endangered species will eventually cause an infection bad enough in the animal to kill it, so all the Komodo Dragon has to do is follow and wait. Their hunting is done during the day because this is the time that they are actice. The mating season for this endangered species runs from May to August. Around September the females start laying their eggs. On average, they lay around 18 eggs though some can lay up twice that amount. These eggs stay unhatched until somewhere around March and April. At about 5 to 7 years old, they are at an age where they can reproduce and also become parents-only if they do not fall victim to other predators. The Komodo Island Monitor is a solitary animal, and they tend to get together only to reproduce. There are not many animals that are seen as a threat for this species, their biggest threat is another Komodo Island Monitor. Another name for this endangered species is the Komodo Dragon. An interesting fact about this species is that they can run up to 18 miles an hour.


 * Why is it endangered?**

Do to human inference, volcanic activities, loss of habitat, poaching, and other natural disasters, there has been a decreases in the population of the Komodo Island Dragon. As of The Endangered Act of 1973 was signed on December 28, 1973. This law provides for the conservations of endangered species that are threatened through the world. The purpose of this law was to prevent these endangered species from going extinct. One thing this law did, was that prohibited any unathorized actions dealing with endangered species. For example, you could not take, sale, or transport any endangered species if you were not authorized. This law also allowed there to be civil penalities for anyone who violated any part of this law. Another thing that this law does, is it helps explains how to determine whether is species is in danger of being extinct in the future. An endangered species is different from a threatened species. An endangered species is when the a certain species is in danger of becoming extinct meaning no longer in existence. A threatened species is when a species is in danger of becoming an endangered species.

In order to preserve this magnifiscent species, the indonesian government has turned the Padar and Rintja island into nature reserves for the Komodo Island Monitor and its prey. The government of Indonesia has also made it illegal to commercialy trade specimens and their skin. This endagnered species is also kept in captivity in order to ensure their safety, but also to ensure that they reproduce.
 * Conservation Efforts**


 * Works Cited**

Dang, Teresa. "Komodo Dragon: Varunus Komodoensis." //Tree of Life//. Tree House, n.d. Web. 15 Oct. 2009. .

Jonathon. "The Komodo Dragon." //Tenan//. Joan Gibke, 2002. Web. 15 Oct. 2009. .

"Komodo Island Monitor." //Earths Endangered Creatures//. Earths Endangered Creatures, 2009. Web. 7 Oct. 2009. .

Peter. "Komodo National Park." //Komodo Tours//. Peter, 28 May 2005. Web. 10 Oct. 2009. .