Komodo dragons are the largest living lizards, native to a handful of Indonesian islands. Meeting their thermal, spatial, and behavioral needs in zoos requires careful attention to reptile-specific welfare science.
Zoo Komodo dragons face welfare challenges rooted in their need for precise thermal management, large space, and low disturbance. Inadequate thermal gradients prevent normal digestion, immune function, and behavioral activity, leading to poor body condition and susceptibility to infection. Social management is demanding: Komodos will fight to the death if incompatible animals are housed together. Enrichment programs that simulate natural hunting behavior, including scent trails and prey-sized food items that must be manipulated, support behavioral expression. Because Komodo dragons are charismatic conservation ambassadors for Indonesian island ecosystems, zoo populations bear both an ethical responsibility for individual welfare and a conservation duty to maintain genetic diversity.