Does Bali have dragon komodos?

[Davita]

My friend has a very nice house in Canggu in Bali. It is availed from a main street but does back, as many other properties do, to extensive paddy.
This morning they found this creature in their swimming pool enjoying a swim.
My friends had professionals capture it and release into the wild so no harm was done......anyone know what lizard and is it dangerous?

 

[Gratilla]

You had yourself a nice big monitor lizard. Beware of the tail swish and getting bitten could give you a nasty infection.

We used to have quite a few on our land, but they'd eat our chickens, so the staff would catch and sell them for obat.

 

[jstar]

.
Even in the ‘city’....

https://forum.expatindo.org/threads/up-close-and-personal-with-indonesias-critters.678/#post-11224

 

[dafluff]

Yep, Monitor lizard (biawak in Indonesian, Alu in Balinese). Much smaller than Komodos, but still nasty if bitten/scratched. Pretty fast climbers and swimmers also. See them all the time where I live.

 

[Balifrog]

A regular "catch" at our East Java "residence"
The nephew hunds them, they skin it with care (skin sold), cut it in pieces and in the BBQ it goes.
And before you ask, NO I didn't taste it....

 

[Davita]

Thanks Balifrog for your pic.
My friend now confesses his lizard wasn't nearly as big as it looks in my post # 1 picture and looks more like yours. I was scared people in Canggu would soon be eaten my komodos..
My friend is a Kiwi so what do you expect from people who live most of their life upside down...

edit. My friend's wife just said that their lizard was about 3 feet long and half was its tail.

 

[Anglian]

When I was in Miri I was driving along and this huge lizard came out the jungle and slowly crossed the road, I slowed down, but a motor cyclist rushed past me and drove very fast at the lizard, the lizard changed gear and disappeared into the jungle like a rocket, the motor cyclist fell off his bike, I stopped picked him up and asked him why he did that, he said to kill the lizard, I asked why, he said they taste like chicken

 

[Davita]

When I was in Miri I was driving along and this huge lizard came out the jungle and slowly crossed the road, I slowed down, but a motor cyclist rushed past me and drove very fast at the lizard, the lizard changed gear and disappeared into the jungle like a rocket, the motor cyclist fell off his bike, I stopped picked him up and asked him why he did that, he said to kill the lizard, I asked why, he said they taste like chicken

I read from someone, who seemed to have great knowledge, that is exactly what one Komodo said to his mate after lunching on a tourist....

 

[Puspawarna]

I've never eaten lizard, but I've had plenty of eel and turtle, and they are both delicious. I wouldn't be surprised if lizard (oar at least some lizard) has a similar taste - mild, meaty, and tender.

 

[Gratilla]

he said they taste like chicken

So I hear, but apparently haram, unless you claim them as obat.

 

[atlantis]

We would love to have that big lizards in the OP in Manado.

The one we get are usually 1m long at best (without tail). Enough though to feed a family.

We had a few venturing behind our warehouses for a while but I am afraid the population is now extinct. My staff were used to prepare a mix of krikil (gravel) with the rest of fish gills and guts, rolled in ball and monitor it. It was stinking but it seems that it was a delicacy enjoyed by these lizards.

Funnily enough the lizard were swallowing the lot and being impaired by the weight of the krikil, were becoming easy prey to catch. I've tried once but didn't have the patience to wait that it finished its meal. I ran after him with a machete but the only thing I've managed was to fall and roll downhill 4 or 5m. This little beast are pretty fast. Talk about loosing face. Now I just wait they catch something while I look for tempurung and gonofu (coconut shell and its sabuk, top notch for BBQ). At least tempurung doesn't run.

 

[Gratilla]

We would love to have that big lizards in the OP in Manado.

The one we get are usually 1m long at best (without tail). Enough though to feed a family.

And you also have the giant fruit-eating bats that are almost as large.

It's well over a decade since I was last in Manado and a gathering crowd in the market caught my eye. Wandering over and looking over the eight deep heads there was a couple preparing dinner. Giant bats which they skeward. [In through the mouth and out through the ass - or was it in through the ass and out through the mouth?] They were burning off the critter body hairs with a blow torch. Taste like chicken, I hear.

The fish market would always have a live toitle or two and a couple of dewy-eyed bules intent on buy and release, which the locals were happy to oblige. They then recaught the flapper and sold it off again to the next pair of dumb bules. Trained homing toitles, I think.

Also saw this strange looking scaly fish about a meter long. Now if I'd have reported that, the Gratilla name would have been world famous. It was the first prehistoric cealocanth found outside of Madagascar waters and "discovered" two hours later by a couple of marine biologists on their honeymoon. Didn't they bladdy well know what they should have been doin?

 

[atlantis]

Also saw this strange looking scaly fish about a meter long. Now if I'd have reported that, the Gratilla name would have been world famous. It was the first prehistoric cealocanth found outside of Madagascar waters and "discovered" two hours later by a couple of marine biologists on their honeymoon. Didn't they bladdy well know what they should have been doin?

It was over 20 years ego (1997). Mark and his wife saw the fish in the market, took a few snaps and decided to plan a visit back to Manado for further investigation and study... and they finally end up staying a few years.

This is a team of french and Indonesian scientist who did further study on the fish, naming him in reference to our beloved city, Latimeria Menadoensis.

The coelacanth has been known by our fishermen for many years prior to its "official" discovery around Manado Tua deep sea caves by the scientist world. Since the first official discovery, no more than ten new catch have been reported which is significantly low and shows how vulnerable the coelacanth is in our region.

Several times a week I purchase big bulks of fish on fishing vessels or at the TPI and it isn't rare that I spot some rare species, or some which are not well known or even not known at all by scientists. They are mostly deep sea creatures. I understand that, because these fish live in very dark areas, sight is limited and in this regard beauty is not an important thing as you call it. But still, when you see some of them you really wonder if the Creator hasn't indulged more than necessary when he thought of them.

 

[atlantis]

And you also have the giant fruit-eating bats that are almost as large.

Bats are ok to eat though it won't be the most sophisticated eating experience you ever had. Next time you are around, let you tempted.

 

[Anglian]

When I was in China this very ancient Chinese bidy tried to sell me some alcoholic drink with a mouse in it, my Chinese friend interperated for me, but this drink was guaranteed to cure everything from coughs, colds, sore holes, run tums and pimples on the bum, needles to say I didn’t buy it

 

[Jaime C]

We had a smaller version, maybe .7 meters tip to tail on our front porch in Bandung a couple of days ago. My wife was too afraid to take a picture.

We get the occasional neighbor cat who decides to wander through the front door, and of course cicaks galore.

 

[macvert]

We had a smaller version, maybe .7 meters tip to tail

7 metres? .... This baby (named Gregory) is 6 metres. I took this photo in 1996 at the Johnstone River croc farm in Nth Qld.
Apparently Gregory is still alive today & this guy (I forget his name) is still doing his thing. Note the garden rake which he uses to splash the water so the other smaller (but still big) crocs launch themselves vertically out of their individual ponds where he drops a dead chook down their throat.
Apparently Gregory which they caught in a swamp is too well fed & too big to move quickly.

 

[macvert]

When I was in China this very ancient Chinese bidy tried to sell me some alcoholic drink with a mouse in it, my Chinese friend interperated for me, but this drink was guaranteed to cure everything from coughs, colds, sore holes, run tums and pimples on the bum, needles to say I didn’t buy it

I can only assume that you didn't have any of the above symptoms ....

 

[Anglian]

I can only assume that you didn't have any of the above symptoms ....

Not at the time

 

[Gratilla]

It was over 20 years ego (1997). Mark and his wife saw the fish in the market, took a few snaps and decided to plan a visit back to Manado for further investigation and study... and they finally end up staying a few years.

Erdmann first took photos of an unidentified "fossil' fish in '97, but the formal discovery of an actual specimen wasn't recognized until September '98, which is when I was in Manado after the revolt of Suharto and the collapse of the rupiah to funny money status. And a great place for me to spend my GBPs.

I'm denying neither the holocaust nor Erdmann (and co)'s claim to be the true discoverers.

While I was in Manado, though, I did hear whisper of a shadowy figure referred to as [shhh] ... LIZARD MAN! And his:

Several times a week ... purchase[s of] big bulks of fish on fishing vessels or at the TPI

for ritualistic satanic purposes.

After that I decided to give Manado a wide berth in order not to risk loss of my soul to the dark forces of evil.