I suddenly woke up and remembered TODAY WE ARE SEEING DRAGONS!!!!!! Yes! I rushed upstairs and got ready. The boat was anchored by Rinca Island in Crocodile Bay. Rinca Island is one of the only islands which has Komodo Dragons, they only live in Indonesia. Did you know that Komodo Dragons were named after Komodo Island which is right next to Rinca?
Immediately when we got to shore we saw some small macaque monkeys running next to some dwarf trees. And two Komodo dragons slowly lumbering around. The dragons were as long as I am, and a greyish black colour with forked tongues flicking in and out; they did look a bit like dragons in a movie but without any wings or spikes.
The first thing we did was go to the ranger building to get a guide. We needed a guide so we did not get eaten by the dragons. The dragons usually eat pigs, deer, buffalo and monkeys, they have also been known to attack humans. Their bite is deadly because they have poison and bacteria in their spit. The guide would defend us with a stick: he spent six months training how to fend off a Komodo dragon before becoming a guide.
There were three walks: short, medium and long. We chose the long walk. Before we started we were shown various videos of people and animals getting attacked by Komodo dragons by the guide. Right at the start of the walk, we came across a group of eight dragons piled up on top of each other, sunbathing. They looked relaxed and proud. I asked the guide how the dragons kill their prey and he said that if they find a deer they jump up and bite their necks. But with buffalo, they bite their back leg and wait for their poison to kill it. The dragons use nests made by the megapode bird and guard their eggs until it rains after which the mud covers the nest.
It felt amazing to see the dragons, they move like they are the king of the island. They live up to 50 years. There are 1700 people and 1500 dragons on the island, on the threatened chart they are listed as vulnerable, which is surprising.
After the walk we stopped at the café to get a drink. I never realised how fat a Komodo dragon was until I saw it from the top, I could see it from the café’s raised platform. Before we headed back we took one last look at the monkeys and deer. Today was an amazing day.
SV Bob The Cat 