Dragons are legendary creatures that have awed humanity for millennia. The legends concerning these creatures are interesting and no one gets weary of hearing them.
Regrettably, the dragons we have conjured up in our heads do not exist. There is, however, one group of animals that are extremely similar to dragons. And that only goes to show that natural wonders do exist.
These “mini dragons” originate from the Agamidae family of lizards and can be found populating the tropical forests of Southeast Asia. Many are capable of soaring to extremely impressive heights within the jungle canopy, and it’s a real wonder to behold, as these pictures show.
8 to 10 inches long, these animals have membranes on the sides of their trunks. They allow them to glide from one tree to the other easily and they reach up to 60 meters in distance while losing only 10 meters in altitude.
They feature a set of ribs protruding from their sides, allowing them to glide through the air effortlessly while evading ᴘʀᴇᴅᴀᴛᴏʀs. They use their tails to steer and rarely land on the ground until it’s time to breed. The male uses the membranes to attract the females and thus begins the mating process. After copulation the female lays eggs. It makes a small hole in the ground and lays about 4-5 eggs, covers them with soil and leaves. The female only stays with the eggs for 24 hours. After that she abandons them and climbs back to the tree.
Unlike the dragon antagonists in the King of Thrones or Lord of the Rings series’, these little guys don’t grow big enough to do any damage to human villages. Their diet includes mainly insects like tree ants and termites.
They all have their own unique aspects that help make them so unique, and that’s just part of the beauty of the natural world that surrounds us.
