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Komodo dragon attacks tourist taking photograph
 [SCMP] A Komodo dragon attacked a tourist in Indonesia who was trying to photograph the giant creatures eating a goat. Singaporean Loh Lee Aik, 67, was rushed to hospital with leg injuries after being pounced on by the venomous creature. "He was probably very excited taking pictures of the dragon, he didn’t realise another dragon was approaching him and then he was bitten," said local police front man Jules Abraham Abast. "Luckily it was a small dragon that bit him."What next? The attack happened during the dragons’ mating season, which runs from May to August and is a time when the lizards are more aggressive. Abast said Loh failed to report his visit to authorities or take a park ranger with him, something visitors are advised to do. Thirty people have been bitten by Komodo dragons since 1974, with five of the victims dying, according to Komodo National Park authorities. Recent research has found that the dragons’ jaws have highly sophisticated venom glands that can cause paralysis, spasms and shock through haemorrhaging. They can grow up to three metres long and weigh up to 70kg. Posted by: Fred 2017-05-06 |
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