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115176
Mon, 04/05/2010 - 21:04
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https://oananews.org//node/115176
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Feature : MANY REASONS TO VOTE FOR KOMODO ISLAND
By: Ageng Wibowo
Jakarta, Apr 5 (ANTARA) - As many people around the globe know, there is only one place on earth where one can still see live specimens of a prehistoric reptile, the Komodo dragon (Varanus Komodoensis). The place is a Komodo Island in eastern Indonesia.
Waran Ridwan, a former chief of the Komodo Island National Park, said at a round-table discussion in Jakarta last week, many biologists are convinced the Komodo dragon is the only ancient reptile alive in the world at present.
The Komodo which is the largest prehistoric lizard that has survived the centuries can grow up to a length of 2 to 3 m, and weigh up to around 120 kg. They are also unique because they survived in a relatively small habitat, said Wawan who headed the National Park in 1987-1993.
"Their habitat consists only of Komodo island and a few smaller islands known as Rinca Island, Padar Island and a few others in Western Flores," Wawan said.
Komodo is the name not only of the carnivorous reptile but also of the island where most of the dragons live and breed.
Komodo is also the name of a hamlet on Komodo Island whose residents believe that the giant carnivore is their `sister' and therefore they must live side by side with the animal without harming it.
"During my service years, I knew of four or five cases in which a komodo had killed a human but the locals never hunted or killed the dragons because they believed the animals were their 'sister'", Wawan said.
People at Komodo hamlet also speak the Komodo language which is different from the tongues used by people on the neighboring islands of Rinca or Labuhan Bajo.
"So, the word Komodo not only refers to the carnivorous giant reptile but also to the island, the hamlet residents and the local language," he said.
Wawan also said, in his opinion, Komodo Island with its komodo dragon, the unique characteristics of its people, its scenic beauty and other things really deserved to be recognized as one of the new seven wonders of the earth.
Komodo Island's discoverer
Although the giant reptile and the island had been existence for ages, they were discovered for the world by a Dutch Army officer, Lieutenant Steyn van Hensbroek, who was stationed on the neighboring island of Flores while serving in the colonial administration of the Dutch East Indies (the former name of Indonesia when it was a Dutch colonial possession). He also was the first westerner to see and kill a Komodo dragon in 1910.
According to Wawan, the Dutchman actually landed on the island accidentally. In interaction with the natives he heard tales about giant land 'crocodiles' in remote areas of Flores and the much smaller and more remote island of Komodo. He eventually decided to set out on a search for the creature.
He was successful in finding and killing a seven-and-a-half- foot Komodo dragon. Upon his return to his post in Flores, he sent the skin from the slain Komodo, along with a photograph of the creature, to Peter A. Ouwens, director of the Zoological Museum in Buitenzorg (now Bogor) in West Java.
Vote Komodo Island as one Seven Wonders
The marketing director general of the Culture and Tourism Ministry, Sapta Nirwanda, said the naming of Komodo National Park as one of the 28 finalists in the new Seven Wonders of the World voting would have a positive impact on local tourism.
According to him, some investors had expressed interest in building international standard or star-rated hotels like the Sheraton and Mercure in the Komodo Island region.
If elected as one of the seven new world wonders, the Komodo National Park would no doubt be visited by many more tourists than now, he said.
Nationally, Komodo National Park would then also be a source of national pride and eventually help to improve the local people's welfare through tourism.
Niwanda also asked the Indonesian people to give maximum support to the "vote for Komodo Island" promotion campaign ahead of the prestigious international vote that will end on November 11, 2011.
Komodo Island is now ranked in the 17th position in the vote after the committee had shortlisted 28 sites in the world from a field of 77 contestants.
To support Komodo Island as one of the new Seven Wonders of the World, people can directly vote online at www.new7wonders.com and follow the simple instruction, voters are also allowed to give multiple votes.
Jakarta, Apr 5 (ANTARA) - As many people around the globe know, there is only one place on earth where one can still see live specimens of a prehistoric reptile, the Komodo dragon (Varanus Komodoensis). The place is a Komodo Island in eastern Indonesia.
Waran Ridwan, a former chief of the Komodo Island National Park, said at a round-table discussion in Jakarta last week, many biologists are convinced the Komodo dragon is the only ancient reptile alive in the world at present.
The Komodo which is the largest prehistoric lizard that has survived the centuries can grow up to a length of 2 to 3 m, and weigh up to around 120 kg. They are also unique because they survived in a relatively small habitat, said Wawan who headed the National Park in 1987-1993.
"Their habitat consists only of Komodo island and a few smaller islands known as Rinca Island, Padar Island and a few others in Western Flores," Wawan said.
Komodo is the name not only of the carnivorous reptile but also of the island where most of the dragons live and breed.
Komodo is also the name of a hamlet on Komodo Island whose residents believe that the giant carnivore is their `sister' and therefore they must live side by side with the animal without harming it.
"During my service years, I knew of four or five cases in which a komodo had killed a human but the locals never hunted or killed the dragons because they believed the animals were their 'sister'", Wawan said.
People at Komodo hamlet also speak the Komodo language which is different from the tongues used by people on the neighboring islands of Rinca or Labuhan Bajo.
"So, the word Komodo not only refers to the carnivorous giant reptile but also to the island, the hamlet residents and the local language," he said.
Wawan also said, in his opinion, Komodo Island with its komodo dragon, the unique characteristics of its people, its scenic beauty and other things really deserved to be recognized as one of the new seven wonders of the earth.
Komodo Island's discoverer
Although the giant reptile and the island had been existence for ages, they were discovered for the world by a Dutch Army officer, Lieutenant Steyn van Hensbroek, who was stationed on the neighboring island of Flores while serving in the colonial administration of the Dutch East Indies (the former name of Indonesia when it was a Dutch colonial possession). He also was the first westerner to see and kill a Komodo dragon in 1910.
According to Wawan, the Dutchman actually landed on the island accidentally. In interaction with the natives he heard tales about giant land 'crocodiles' in remote areas of Flores and the much smaller and more remote island of Komodo. He eventually decided to set out on a search for the creature.
He was successful in finding and killing a seven-and-a-half- foot Komodo dragon. Upon his return to his post in Flores, he sent the skin from the slain Komodo, along with a photograph of the creature, to Peter A. Ouwens, director of the Zoological Museum in Buitenzorg (now Bogor) in West Java.
Vote Komodo Island as one Seven Wonders
The marketing director general of the Culture and Tourism Ministry, Sapta Nirwanda, said the naming of Komodo National Park as one of the 28 finalists in the new Seven Wonders of the World voting would have a positive impact on local tourism.
According to him, some investors had expressed interest in building international standard or star-rated hotels like the Sheraton and Mercure in the Komodo Island region.
If elected as one of the seven new world wonders, the Komodo National Park would no doubt be visited by many more tourists than now, he said.
Nationally, Komodo National Park would then also be a source of national pride and eventually help to improve the local people's welfare through tourism.
Niwanda also asked the Indonesian people to give maximum support to the "vote for Komodo Island" promotion campaign ahead of the prestigious international vote that will end on November 11, 2011.
Komodo Island is now ranked in the 17th position in the vote after the committee had shortlisted 28 sites in the world from a field of 77 contestants.
To support Komodo Island as one of the new Seven Wonders of the World, people can directly vote online at www.new7wonders.com and follow the simple instruction, voters are also allowed to give multiple votes.
