Komodo Dragons found to be venomous

[Thedus]

Previously it was thought the Komodo's mouth harboured virulent bacteria that quickly infected and subdued prey.

But an analysis of Komodo specimens has shown a well-developed venom gland with ducts that lead to their large teeth.

The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences report shows that rather than using a strong bite force, Komodos keep a vice-like grip on their prey.

In this way, the venom can seep into the large wounds they make with their teeth.

Full story

Another write-up on The Guardian

The venom appears to lower blood pressure, inhibit blood clotting, and I also read that it may also cause muscle paralysis (though I can't recall were I read that).  Excluding the muscle paralysis this rings of a hemotoxin.  And often times when prey is injected with a hemotoxin it is able to flee before collapsing and dying - this is due to the fact that hemotoxins take longer to kill a prey than neurotoxins.  Based on strictly observation of the Dragon and how it deals with prey animals, and the belief that serrations in the Dragon's teeth held onto rotting tissue from previous meals it is easy to see why scientists believed that Dragon prey died of intense bacterial infections.  Hemotoxins also can cause tissue damage which could be mistaken for necrosis brought on by localized bacterial infection upon cursory inspection.  ...Which begs the question why no one tried to study the remains of Dragon prey to see what properties it's saliva had.

The muscle paralysis is a trait of neurotoxins... which means that the Komodo Dragon may employ a combination of hemotoxic and neurotoxic venom.  Something that is not unheard of in reptiles.  ...either way this just solidifies the notion that the Komodo Dragon is one bad ass animal!

[CompanyMan]

I always wanted to have a large ranchstyle hacienda with an in-ground pool. empty of course just with some brackish water in the deep end and sand in normal shallower side, with a couple running around in it.

Feed em' chickens, and the children of my enemies! ( J/K on the last part )

[Neltharion]

I always wanted to have a large ranchstyle hacienda with an in-ground pool. empty of course just with some brackish water in the deep end and sand in normal shallower side, with a couple running around in it.

Feed em' chickens, and the children of my enemies! ( J/K on the last part )

You better be joking, why would anyone feed chickens to these things? I mean come on!

[CompanyMan]

You ever try and catch a chicken? Hours of fun to watch!

[InspectorDC]

Komodo dragons just got a lot less cool 

[Neltharion]

No they didn't

They got more awesome!

They are freaking venomous! Thats awesome!
They do the work, not some pansy bacteria! They are fucking mental huge! And they are venomous to boot.

What more could you ask for?

Fire breathing, ridable and having wings possibly.

[InspectorDC]

Pfft, tons of creatures out there are venous. It's far more manly to kill your prey with your own garden variety germs in your mouth than have to use a wimpy venom.

[Neltharion]

A venomous, fucking massive, lizard that looks like a dragon.

Whats not awesome with that! Its fucking mint!

[CompanyMan]

They'll still claw you open from your ass to your appetite and chew your throat off!

[InspectorDC]

Still not the same as killing you with poor hygiene.

[CompanyMan]

Blood, guts, and spitting asshole for the win.

[Pandorag]

Still not the same as killing you with poor hygiene.

There are plenty of humans who can do that! 

Blood, guts, and spitting asshole for the win.

Nothing more bad ass than that! Thank god I'm not! 

[Thedus]

No they didn't

They got more awesome!

They are freaking venomous! Thats awesome!
They do the work, not some pansy bacteria! They are fucking mental huge! And they are venomous to boot.

What more could you ask for?

Fire breathing, ridable and having wings possibly.

I agree!  The Komodo Dragon has always been bad ass in my book, and this just raises the bar.  The Dragon is now one formidable son of a bitch!  Not only is it the largest lizard, but it's now one of the largest venomous reptiles!

Another article.

[Dutch90]

I remember reading this a while ago and being quite surprised. In retrospect though, this shouldn't come as that big a surprise. Monitor lizards are closely related to snakes (moreso than most other lizards), even sharing a Jacobson's organ and the characteristic forked tongue that comes with it. A venomous bite only reinforces this kinship. I suppose this means other monitor lizards could be venomous as well.

  ...Which begs the question why no one tried to study the remains of Dragon prey to see what properties it's saliva had.

Not to mention human victims who survived but had severe and prolonged infections. You'd think they would thoroughly investigate these victims medically to ascertain what caused their infections. Surely they would have found the cause to be venom rather than aggressive bacteria if they had performed such a medical investigation. I smell a lawsuit!

[BishopIII]

 If I remember correctly, didn't one of the articles discussing Komodo Dragon venom mention that all lizards and snakes are venomous to a degree. I'm sure that it was touted as the reason that lizard and snake bites inflame and just fucking kill for hours on end!! (I should know - Iguana bite, no thanks!)
 I think that Dragon venom is both haemo and neurotoxic, hence the blood loss AND paralysis, it was only later in snake evolution that the venom specialised into either haemotoxins and neurotoxins. Both work as well as the other, only, as Thedus said, Haemotoxins take ages to kill, thus suiting a different hunting style for a more patient hunter; bite quickly, then just slowly follow.