A construction worker is being treated in hospital after being attacked by a Komodo Dragon on Rinca Island, part of East Nusa Tenggara Province in the Lesser Sunda Islands of Indonesia. Elias Agas, 46,was attacked by the Lizard while working on a new tourist resort on the island, Komodo National Park, and which was uninhabited before construction on the resort began earlier this year. The project has been strongly opposed by environmental groups in the area, who are concerned about the impact that it will have on the Lizards, and the potential for fuelling Human-Lizard conflict.
Komodo Dragons, Varanus komodoensis, are found on the islands of Komodo, Rinca, Flores, and Gili Motang in East Nusa Tenggara Province. The species is considered to be Threatened under the terms of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature’s Red List of Threatened Species, due to its the small and fragmented population, and frequent fluctuations in the size of the subpopulations that make up the total population size. The small range of these Lizards, combined with the fact that they are prone to conflict with Humans (Komodo Dragons are large, powerful venomous, and prone to attacking both Humans and livestock), makes any Human development within their territory a potential threat to the species.
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