Face to Face with a Komodo Dragon in the Wild

- Okay, I am less than just a couple feet away from a full grown Komodo dragon, and it has taken 10 years to get to this point. (exciting music) This is like some serious "Godzilla" shots right here. (exciting music) (animal groans) (exciting music continues) (exciting music fades) (tense music) The Lesser Sunda Islands. It's taken my entire career to reach this moment, to stand face to face with the last living dragons. Across this landscape, the terrain feels barren, a desolate kingdom ruled by these ancient reptiles who move with unfathomable power

and purpose when hunger calls. Nestled in the folds of this unforgiving land, human life has found a way. Generations of people living in the shadow of a legendary giant. Yet sometimes these two worlds collide and the outcome is brutal. Survival here is not a game, it's a legacy written in scars. This location here is the exact same place where Steve Irwin filmed his famous Komodo Dragon episode. I'll never forget seeing that as a kid to be like, "Wow, he's getting chased around by a Komodo dragon."

He had to run and jump up and climb into a tree. That's not gonna happen for us today. There's actually been a lot of ecotourism growth since, you know, the 20 plus years ago when Steve filmed here. You can see I'm walking on this really nice dock. This is big enough for cruise ships to come in and hundreds of thousands of people on a yearly basis come to visit Komodo National Park. This is considered a world heritage site. These dragons are critically endangered and it's amazing that this sort of protection is put in place to essentially preserve not only the environment, but a species that has fewer than 5,000 left in the wild.

I believe they're just over 3,500 Komodo dragons living between Komodo, Rinca, and Flores. And despite being big and sluggish-looking, they are incredibly fast. Bite from a Komodo dragon would be a serious problem. We actually got to interview a nice gentleman yesterday who was almost killed by a Komodo dragon a year ago. He was out collecting honey and a dragon sprung up out of the underbrush, chased him, he tripped, the dragon got on top of him, ripped his leg apart, ripped his hands apart, crushed his hands, he nearly died.

He climbed up into a tree and survived for almost seven hours while drinking the honey that he had collected. Did you feel any burning or could you feel that there was venom in the bite of the Komodo dragon? (translator speaking foreign language) - Yeah. (speaking foreign language) - He say, "Yes, feeling very bad, and pain and very sick." - [Host] We're glad you're here today. - Thank you. - Thank you for sitting down and talking with us. - [Trent] There's a massive dragon down here.

You guys should get up and walk over by it. - Oh, okay. Are you comfortable going to see the dragon? - Yeah. - Okay, so we've got a Komodo dragon. Yeah. How's that for timing? Huh? Wow. That is a very, very large animal. Are you comfortable like walking down to here to look at him? We get a couple of good shots.

(dramatic music) Do we go around the back side? - It's okay. (dramatic music continues) (happy music) Komodo Dragons sure are prevalent in town. You see little statues and trinkets honoring them all up and down the street. I got a baby Komodo dragon that is hanging out right up here on the edge of this house. This to me, is the epitome of urban wildlife.

A baby hatchling Komodo dragon in someone's house, And the babies will come down out of the hills and into this habitation area so they can actually be up and away from the large Komodo dragons. So it's actually pretty smart. This dragon knows that if it's down here by humans, people aren't gonna mess with it, and then the large Komodo dragons are not gonna cannibalize it. So just taking the opportunity to get a couple of cool shots to prove that dragons are living amongst the people. Okay. We are officially beginning the trek off on the longest hike you can take on Komodo Island.

Our guide has two specific dragon feeding spots that he's going to be leading us to. Ajis has been guiding expeditions on these islands for well over 20 years, so he is well acquainted with the dramatic shifts in behavior that these dragons can display. The environment is very, very dry, and every single log looks like it could be a Komodo dragon. They're incredibly well camouflaged in an environment like this, and even though it's the world's largest lizard, it is kind of like looking for a needle in a haystack. Now these are highly protected, critically endangered animals, so we'll not be able to get hands on with the dragons.

However, we are able to get the cameras extremely close. Mario and Trent have modified a small RC vehicle and have mounted a tiny action camera on top of it. We also have the RED Komodo-X camera, which is a high powered piece of machinery that's exceptionally small, and it shoots in 6K at 80 frames a second. So this will be some of the most epic shots of Komodo dragons that we could possibly get, and we may be, likely are, the first to ever use the Komodo-X to film Komodo Dragons. Well, we hiked and hiked, and we finally found a Komodo dragon. And around the Komodo dragon is about 150 people traveling from all over the world to be able

to see these amazing animals. That's a big one too. This is what helps sustain Komodo National Park is to have people come and see these animals in their natural environment. Now, this is a completely wild Komodo dragon. The Rangers are helping to keep people at a safe distance, which gives everybody the opportunity to really admire these last giants. (chill music)

And Trent's right here with the RED camera, getting some pretty epic shots following the dragon. And here comes another group coming in right here. The entire island of Komodo is flooding right to this spot. (dramatic music) There you have it, the ecotourism side of Komodo Island. And while this is a great draw to help support the conservation of these animals, we want to get more remote. So next we're gonna be heading to Rinka Island that has far fewer tourists,

and our guides are gonna take us far off trail with the hope that we can find Komodo Dragons acting in a more naturalistic way. (dramatic music) Now, you wouldn't wanna get bitten by a Komodo dragon because their jaws are designed for biting and tearing. That means that when they lock down on a prey item, they rip hunks of flesh off and swallow that flesh down whole. They primarily feast on deer, pigs and water buffalo, which inhabit these islands. But the teeth of the Komodo dragon are super unique.

Not only are they razor sharp and turned backwards, but they're serrated and they actually have iron lining. So you could say that this animal has a metal bite. Komodo dragons also have a massive amount of bacteria in their mouths, and it's believed that they have venom glands. So between the venom and the bacteria and the damaging bite, if you were to get bitten by a Komodo dragon, it would without question be a medical emergency. (chill music) So when you first get to Rinka Island, there's a very nice boardwalk you take from the dock back to the ranger station, and then we get off trail.

Now, a lot of people that come to this island, because there are tourists that visit Rinka generally just take the boardwalk and want to see Komodo dragons from this higher perspective. But we are getting special access, so we're gonna be able to go off trail and deep into the island to look for dragons. You guys see a dragon? Oh yeah. There's one right there. So we're right next to the ranger station right now, and there is a Komodo dragon right there. Perfect situation for us to possibly put the RC car down. So the little RC car that we have, Mario and Trent modified it to be able to hold an action camera on top. And we're off.

Okay. The Komodo Dragon's definitely in notice of the car. They're very keen hunters, primarily. Oh, it's going right to the car. He's definitely super curious. Sees it. And this could be the shot Mario wants beautiful light on the dragon tongue flicking out. This is it. Yes, this is the shot.

Wow. Now it probably looks to the Komodo dragon like it's just some weird little creature in the environment it's never seen before. These lizards are incredibly intelligent, very curious, and this Komodo dragon is definitely thinking to itself right now. What is this thing? It's making a weird little mechanical sound. It doesn't smell like a prey item, but I'm gonna investigate just a little bit closer.

(exciting music) Oh no, he flipped the car. Our guide's gonna go flip it the right direction. Okay, we're back. Check that out. (screaming music) This is like some serious Godzilla shots right here. Oh, look at the tail. Komodo dragon alongside our RC car. Oh, nice driving Mario. Mario Kart in real life komodo dragon. Nice. Good move.

Oh, and it just sat right in front of the camera. That is like the quintessential Komodo dragon pose right there. This is probably the best situation that we're gonna have the entire day to get me up close with a Komodo dragon. So I'm gonna be able to get on the backside of the dragon, one that is just sunning itself. Wow, that's perfect right there. Okay. I am less than just a couple feet away from a full-grown Komodo dragon. This thing is absolutely epic from the tip of its snout to the tip of its tail.

This is the largest lizard on the planet, the biggest of the monitors, and it has taken 10 years to get to this point. Right now, the dragon is looking right at me, huge, massive front claws. And the thing that's different about Komodo dragons as compared to other monitor lizards, is the robustness of their bodies. All of that muscular structure, not only in the forearms, but in the hind limbs and that tail. Body covered in little tiny osteoderms. When you're this close, you can see just how armor plated this animal is. I just wanna make sure that I'm in a decent position just in case he decides that he's gonna lunge up and come at me.

I've gotta be prepared to spring out of the way. And this Komodo dragon just kind of worked its way up through the mud and into the spot to sun. Big front nostrils, huge eyes, perfect for diurnal hunting. And just like all monitor lizards, they have a forked tongue, which allows them to sense the environment. We've seen that a number of different times today, testing out what the RC car. But to be this close to one of these dragons is incredible.

It's amazing when you see a lizard like this just absorbing the sunlight as an ectotherm, charging up its body for the day, like its own personal, internal batteries just pumping up. I mean, we are talking four feet away from the face of a Komodo dragon. This was something that I dreamed of my entire life, side by side with a living dinosaur. (dramatic music) And there he goes. Wondering back off into the shade. That was so cool. Okay, so we've got some amazing RC car shots.

We've got me up close with the Komodo dragon. Now we want to try to see some very unique behaviors in the wild. So we're gonna hike inland to the island and see what we can come across. (dramatic music) Got a Komodo dragon right down the edge of this river embankment.

Yeah, it looks like we're gonna be able to get a little bit closer, see what happens. Look at that. (eerie music) I will tell you, if you were out here on your own, wandering down this riverbed, you stumbled upon this, boy, would it give you a start? I wanna get closer. (eerie music)

(eerie music continues) That's absolutely amazing. You look at an animal like that, knowing how fast and powerful it can be, and to see it in a state like that, our guide said the wound on its shoulder is likely from a battle earlier today. So he thinks he's probably lost a fight. He's come down to water, have a drink, lick his wounds, have a nap, and live to fight another day.

Okay, Ajis just called out that we might have a Komodo dragon on the other side of this hill here. Might be in the underbrush. Good job Ajis. That's the guy right there. He found it. - Okay. I'm laying down just a couple of feet from Komodo Dragon. That's a small one, but it's still a Komodo Dragon. This one's absolutely beautiful.

Lots of green and yellow speckling around its snout and its eye. This one looks incredibly healthy too. Lemme show you guys how close I am. It's right there. One of the really cool and unique things about Rinka is the dragons actually outnumber the humans. There are around 1400 Komodo dragons on this island, and only 600 humans that live here in the very small village.

So far we've seen three. That's why you keep hiking. The more you move, the better your chances of finding one. Pretty cool situation here. We've got a buffalo in the mud wall though, just enjoying an afternoon swim. Look at this. Hi buddy. Look at you. That looks so comfortable. It's so hot out here. Smells horrible. But this cooling sensation of the water in the mud definitely helps these animals keep their body temperature low, especially like this in the middle of the day.

You guys smell that? Definitely smells like something dead. Alright, keep your eyes peeled. (sniffing) Ooh, yeah. Something definitely stinks. That's a dead Komodo dragon carcass. - [Guide] Dead dragon. They come for eat the dead dragon. - [Host] Oh, it's eating a Komodo dragon. This is crazy. Got a Komodo dragon eating a Komodo dragon. We can stay on this side of the river and get all the shots. Wanna be real, real quiet. Try not disturb it. Oh, This is insane.

(dramatic music) This is definitive proof of cannibalism in this species. Alright, boys. Looks like we're gonna be planted here for a while. (exciting music) Okay. He seems to be cool with the fact that we're here and looks like he's gonna go back to feeding, sniffing it all out, probably looking for the good stuff.

Pretty decomposed looking body. There's some guts there. Oh, that's disgusting. What? - [Guide] Another one's coming. - [Host] Oh, there's another one coming. Right place, right time. That's what's all about with wildlife filmmaking. He's come back in for another bite. I think he can hear that there's another Komodo dragon coming. (dramatic music)

Unfortunately, there's not a lot of meat left on this carcass. Oh, now I'm like losing interest. You gotta wonder how much nourishment is still left in this sort of deflated looking carcass. Still is definitely some meat in those hind quarters.

Okay, so the Komodo dragon's gone back up the hillside. It is done eating, so we're just gonna come over and investigate the carcass. Wow. Pretty putrid. I can't imagine that eating any of that would be very delicious. Whoa. Well, it absolutely stinks. But that is the carcass of a Komodo dragon. And for the past several hours we watched six different individual adult dragons come down and feast (retching) on the remains of what's here. Now, Komodo dragons being cannibalistic is not new to science, but to ever capture that behavior on camera is something that's incredibly unique and we managed to do it not only here on Rinka Island,

but also with the RED Komodo. Big thanks to RED and iodyne for supporting this episode. I think that's the footage none of us are ever gonna forget. I'm Coyote Peterson. Be brave. Stay wild. We'll see you on the next adventure. Alright, it stinks. Let's get outta here. (dramatic music)

(dramatic music escalates) (bird chirping) (coyote howls)