This is really a dragon: it turned out that Komodo lizards have an invisible bone layer

Komodo lizards do not cease to amaze scientists. Not only are these reptiles the largest of all lizards living on the planet, females of this species can breed without the participation of males and this species has a number of interesting behavioral features, but now it also turned out that they have bone armor under their skin . Apparently, it is no accident that the second name of this unique species is the Komodo dragon.

A striking discovery was made by American scientists from the University of Texas. Biologists examined the body of a Komodo monitor lizard using a computer tomograph and revealed that it had rare bone plates in the animal kingdom that were invisible to the naked eye. The ossified plates are located directly in the skin of reptiles and are small in size. But the most striking thing is that these plates cover the entire body of the animal, from nose to tail, forming an inner protective layer. Why did Komodo monitor lizards, who are the largest predators in their habitats and also have very dangerous poison, need such additional protection?

In a more detailed study, it turned out that only adult lizards have such bone plates, while young individuals who have not reached puberty do not have such a structural feature. In this regard, scientists have suggested that adult individuals need unusual armor in order to confront representatives of their own species. This theory is consistent with the behavior that monitor lizards exhibit in the wild. The fact is that these reptiles are lonely and very intolerant of their relatives. The maximum that they agree on is to tolerate an individual of the opposite sex nearby during the breeding season. By the way, in the same period incredibly violent fights happen between males, which often end in the death of one of the rivals. Given all of the above, it could be assumed that such additional armor can create additional protection during tournament battles and battles for captured prey.