Komodo Dragons And Their Reproduction Habits
Komodo Dragons mate from the months of May to August, and competition among males for mating rights can be fierce. When competing for a female, male Komodo Dragons will rear up on their hind legs, (a formidable sight!), and attack each other with their claws, teeth, and tails, with the winner eventually knocking the loser to the ground. These fights rarely end in death however, since even if one Komodo bites another, they seem to be immune to the deadly bacteria that they carry in their saliva.
After a female has mated successfully, she'll carry the eggs until around the month of September, where she'll then lay up to thirty of them in a nest that she digs with her powerful claws. The eggs will gestate for around eight or nine months, after which the young Komodos will hatch and immediately seek the protection of the trees. Mothers don't care for their young after they hatch, and newborn Komodo Dragons are constantly in danger of being eaten by larger Komodos. After about a year, the young Komodo Dragons will leave the trees for life on the ground. It is during this time that Komodos, not yet full grown, are at their most vulnerable. Only the strongest and fastest of them will survive the predation of larger Komodo Dragons.
Komodo Dragons have been successfully bred and raised in zoos, but animal conservationists hope that they will be able to survive in their natural habitat for as long as man and nature allows.
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