Key Points
- It is not normal for a bat to pick on another animal like this. Bats are usually uninterested in most other creatures, except other bats.
- Komodo dragons are opportunistic when it comes to diet. They will eat just about any animal that crosses their path, including birds and bats.
- Komodo dragons have venomous bites as well as dozens of deadly strains of bacteria living in their mouths.
One of Indonesia’s 17,508 islands is Pulau Komodo Island. Komodo, which is a part of the province of East Nusa Tenggara, is situated between the nearby islands of Flores to the east and Sumbawa to the west. The largest lizard in the world, called the Komodo Dragon and named after the island, calls the coastal region home.
These lizards can weigh up to 150 pounds and reach a maximum length of 10 feet. A rare piece of footage shows the Komodo Dragon in its natural habitat, looking for a tasty meal. This enormous reptile, which has an armored skeleton and a vicious bite, is known for its covert hunting tactics.
Naturally, Komodo dragons are the apex predators on the islands where they live. These carnivores rule the forests, meadows, and deserts where they roam because they are so large and vicious.
Except for the rare event when they consume their own offspring, the larger adult Komodo dragons hunt far larger prey. The monitors devour the carcasses of previously killed animals and kill their own prey. A few of their favored prey are the native Indonesian Timor deer, water buffalo, primates, bats, and wild boar.
As the video of the wild animal plays on, we see a bat hanging from a tree branch and so does the dragon! The bat spreads out its wings almost to tell the predator to back off. If only this was enough to keep Stellaluna safe.
Hunting Tactics
Finding the ideal location for a stake-out, Komodo dragons will spend hours waiting for potential prey. When an unsuspecting victim appears in their way without warning… Pounce! There isn’t much that a 150-pound, armored behemoth can’t do to secure the meal.
This particular dragon can be seen standing on its hind legs as it reaches for the bat over and over again. There are a handful of shots where we see how close the cameraman is to this giant creature. Thankfully, the person recording is kept perfectly safe while capturing this stunning footage.
Eventually, the dragon makes a final leap and tears the bat straight off the branch. It shakes it from side to side to disorient it and prevent the bat from escaping. Watching this animal eat a bat alive feels like you’re observing a dinosaur eat its prey.
A commentator on the video says, “I never knew how much determination and power Komodo dragons have. It…near was trying to climb the tree. And you could see it was thinking of ways to get that bat down. From trying to jump up in the air to get the bat, to trying to climb the tree, to also using its own body weight to bring the branch down or to break the branch itself.”
Do Komodo Dragons Normally Eat Bats?
Komodo Dragons are solitary hunters and will usually hunt for lizards, snakes, birds, fish, and small mammals. They are able to catch bigger animals, such as wild pigs and goats, but they have also been known to eat bats and other smaller animals like insects and carrion. If necessary, these dragons will scavenge for food, eating whatever is available in their environment.
Is This Normal Bat Behavior?
Bats are not typically aggressive when it comes to interacting with other animals (including humans). However, they are not overly friendly either. This is because of their caution in the presence of large animals that may be predators. Consequently, bats tend to stay away from people and other animal activities. Usually, they remain aloof and go about their own affairs, looking for food or shelter.
Bats are highly social creatures, displaying a wide range of behaviors such as living in large colonies, forming lifelong monogamous relationships, engaging in collective activities like food searching and thermoregulation, communicating through vocalizations and body language, and even recognizing individuals from their own species based on facial recognition cues. Additionally, some bat species partake in cooperative parenting or grooming tasks with other members of their colony, indicating that bats are more socially inclined than many humans believe.
Up Next
More from A-Z Animals
The Featured Image
Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us? Contact the AZ Animals editorial team.
