There are less than 2,500 Komodo dragons — the world’s largest living lizards — left in the wild.
The venomous beasts can spend hours in one spot, waiting for a deer, boar, goat or anything sizable and nutritious. By the time the reach adulthood, they can be over 10 feet long and more than 350 pounds.
Dale McGinnity, curator of ectotherms at the Nashville Zoo, researches the endangered Komodo dragons and other reptiles. The zoo has two baby Komodo dragons on display for the next year, while a permanent habitat is built for them.
McGinnity spent four months in Indonesia working with Komodo dragons in the 1990s and discusses their lifestyle with Here & Now’s Jeremy Hobson.
- Dale McGinnity, curator of ectotherms at Nashville Zoo.