302 
Auffenberg 
havioral patterns unrelated to thermoregula- 
tion (Auffenberg, 1970, 1974), Typically, in- 
dividuals are awake from approximately 4 :30 
to as late as 23 :30 hours. However, the pat- 
tern is bimodal, with activity peaks at about 
9 :30 and 15 :30 hours. 
The annual precipitation pattern is sea- 
sonal, and the total amount of rain is small. 
These are very important features with re- 
spect to both shelter and prey. 
THE ANIMAL 
Perhaps the most significant physical fac- 
tor affecting the behavior of the adult 
Komodo monitor is its great size. The aver- 
age total length of 49 cm for hatchlings is 
considerably longer than the adult length 
of most lizards. Adults reach a length of 
slightly over 3 m and a weight of 60 kg 
in the wild ; in captivity, they are sometimes 
unnaturally obese. The teeth are highly 
adapted for cutting flesh, being large, com- 
pressed laterally, and provided with serra- 
tions on the posterior edge. The claws are 
large, strong, recurved, and sharp. As in 
most monitor species, the tail is heavy and 
long, provided with effective muscular con- 
trol, and often used as a defensive weapon. 
Combined, these physical characteristics en- 
hance the potential for inflicting serious in- 
jury during intraspecific coaction and for 
killing large prey. 
Komodo monitors are capable of running 
quadrupedally at speeds approaching 30 
km/hr and are able to sustain such locomo- 
tion for distances of nearly 1 km. On occa- 
sion, individuals move bipedally, although 
they do not move far or fast by this means. 
They are effective climbers, reaching heights 
of 20 m (particularly the young) ; are strong 
swimmers, having been observed as far as 
4 km from shore; are reasonably effective 
divers, having been found as much as 2 m 
below the surface; and are capable of exca- 
vating burrows of up to 10 m in length. 
The accessory olfactory and visual systems 
are quite well developed in Varanids (North- 
cutt, this volume). Age and sex recognition 
seem to be based more on chemical cues than 
on color, form, or movement. The skin colors 
and patterns of this species are largely 
cryptic and thus important in predatory 
behavior and hiding. 
Studies by Bartholomew and Tucker 
(1964) have shown that a closely related 
varanid species (V. varms) has a remark- 
ably high metabolic rate for a reptile. Core 
temperatures of V. komodoensis are also 
high (37-39.5 C, McNab and Auffenberg, 
1976). The heart has a more complete 
ventricular septum than any other lizard 
studied so far (Meinertz, 1952; Vorstman, 
1933), which assures less mixing of oxygen- 
ated and unoxygenated blood. Such physical 
and physiological characteristics provide V. 
komodoensis with the potential for complex 
behavioral patterns. 
TERRITORIES 
Behavioral data to be described are based 
largely on observations made from blinds 
erected in different parts of the study areas. 
One hundred and ten animals were captured 
and marked with numbered plastic tags at- 
tached to the skin, and the same identification 
number was painted in large size on one side 
of the body for identification from a distance. 
Sex, weight, general condition, and other 
data were obtained during initial and sub- 
sequent processing. 
Population Density 
Results of marking-resighting studies sug- 
gest that in all habitats there is an average 
of 8.8 Komodo monitors/km^ Densities vary 
with habitat and geography (Table 1). 
There are varieties of area tenure patterns 
in the Komodo monitor which appear to be 
largely size and sex dependent. These pat- 
terns range from exclusive use of a territory 
(core area) by large, sexually mature males, 
to complete lack of established ranges, par- 
ticularly in the smaller members of the 
population. 
