Dragon Sightings?, page 1

reply to post by flygon227

HI there flygon227! welcome to ATS!!

Here is a thread by one of your friends Dragonoligist Zac!!!
www.abovetopsecret.com...

www.abovetopsecret.com...

There is really dragons still hear on earth but only shrunk a little bit:

Bearded Dragons:Agamidae: Pogona Vitticeps

Bearded Dragons are lizards with prominent spines and a triangular head. They also have a spiny jaw pouch that resembles a beard and gives them their name. They are sometimes mistaken for horned toads. Although a baby bearded dragon is small, when fully grown they can reach almost two feet in length (though half of this is tail)!

The famous "beard" is used as a defence mechanism. When threatened, they puff out their jaw pouch revealing the spines. This gives them an impressive appearance that makes many predators think twice. The bearded dragon will then raise itself onto two legs and run away.

Australian Frilled Dragons:Chlamydosaurus Kingii

The frilled dragon is an arboreal lizard, meaning that it spends most of its time in trees. Its preferred habitat is woodland and forest. It has excellent camouflage and can be very difficult to see when in a tree. Frilled dragons usually only come down to the ground when they need to forage for food.
The frilled dragon is named after the highly distinctive frill around its neck. This impressive frill consists of large flaps of skin and is opened out as a defence mechanism, to "big itself up". It is also suspected that extending the frill can help the lizard to control its body temperature.

Another distinctive feature of the frilled lizard is that on those occasions when it has to run it does so on its two hind legs.

A fully grown frilled dragon can reach up to 95cm (30 inches) in length. The frill itself can be up to 35cm (14 inches) across. They are mainly carnivorous but will eat some fruit if necesary.

The Komodo Dragon:Varanus Komodoensis

The Komodo Dragon lizard, discovered by the West in 1910, is the world's largest lizard and can grow up to three metres (almost ten feet) in length. Average lifespan is around twenty years. They live on a small number of Indonesian islands, including the eponymous Komodo Island itself.

Their preferred habitat is dry, hot places such as open grassland. They are currently classified as a vulnerable species however they could become endangered.

Komodos are part of the awesome monitor lizard family. They can see up to 300 metres and their eyes are better adapted to seeing movement than stationary objects. Komodo dragons were initially thought to be completely deaf, however more recent research has shown that they can hear, albeit in a restricted frequency range.

The Komodo's main hunting sense is that of smell. The lizard samples the air with its tongue then returns the two tongue tips to the mouth where the air is "analysed". A Komodo dragon can sense the smell of carrion up to four kilometres (two and a half miles) away.

Given their size, Komodo dragons are not built for a long chase - however they can sprint at up to 20 kilometres per hour (12 miles per hour) for short periods of time. Their preferred hunting strategy to get food is thus to sit quietly in one spot waiting for something big and tasty to come near.

In fact if the Komodo lizard's prey escapes after it is bitten then it could still become dragon food; the Komodo's bite is toxic to other creatures.

Chinese Water Dragons:Physignathus Cocininus

Chinese water dragons are equally at home up trees and in water. They often bask on branches, if possible a branch over a pool of water. If attacked or startled they will then drop themselves into the water and swim to safety.

The Chinese water dragon will occasionally eat fruit or vegetables however it is normally carniverous. In the wild they like to eat frogs, rodents and small birds.

Like other lizards, Chinese are often sold as pets. If the lizard has been captured in the wild then it is likely to be an adult and may not adjust properly to captivity. Alternatives include buying a young Chinese water dragon or breeding your own.

These days you can own your own little dragon!