The attraction announced Monday that Diah has joined the exhibit as an ambassador for one of the world’s most recognizable reptile species.
“Komodo dragons are one of the most impressive and well recognized reptiles in the world,” said Marci Kurtz Hoffman, assistant curator of the Rainforest Pyramid and animal wellbeing manager at Moody Gardens. “We are excited to have Diah as an ambassador for her species and allow guests to make a connection with this special animal.”
Diah, whose name means “brightness, light or beauty,” hatched at the Fort Worth Zoo in 2017 as part of the Species Survival Plan, a cooperative breeding program designed to maintain healthy, genetically diverse animal populations in accredited zoos and aquariums.
According to Hoffman, Diah’s move will allow the Fort Worth Zoo to make room for future Komodo dragon breeding efforts, while Moody Gardens will provide her permanent home.
Native to a handful of Indonesian islands, Komodo dragons (Varanus komodoensis) are the largest living lizards on Earth and can grow to nearly 10 feet long. They are apex predators known for their muscular builds, sharp senses and forked tongues, which help them detect chemical cues in their environment.
“They’re very recognized as being a top predator,” Hoffman said. “They’re pretty gnarly when they feed. They do bite their prey, and they follow it as it gets an infection and dies from their bite, and then they come and eat off of that prey.”
Their size and active nature also make them challenging animals to house.
“Komodo dragons do take up a lot of space,” Hoffman said. “They are a monitor lizard, meaning they’re always moving around. They do have a territory, so they do live solitary.”
The International Union for Conservation of Nature classifies the species as endangered, citing threats including habitat loss, climate change and rising sea levels affecting the limited islands where Komodo dragons live in the wild.
For now, Diah is being given time to adjust to her new surroundings. Animal care specialists are monitoring her behavior as she settles in, and guests may or may not spot her during the acclimation process depending on where she chooses to spend her time.
Her arrival comes three months after Moody Gardens announced the death of Diablo, the Komodo dragon that had lived at the attraction since he was three months old. Diablo was nearing his 16th birthday when he died in March.
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