Iron Coating on Komodo Dragon Teeth Sets Them Apart as the Most Metal Lizards

Should you request different crushed to ne'er permission your house, conscionable cognize that legendarily bloodthirsty gigantic reptiles that person been known to devour humans besides person teeth coated successful iron. 

Some precise brave researchers astatine King’s College London made the find successful the dentition of Komodo dragons, which tin turn to implicit 10 feet (3 meters) and 360 pounds (163 kilograms). The researchers examined the skulls and teeth of specimens kept astatine museums, and besides the rima of a surviving Komodo kept astatine a London zoo.

Upon intimately examining the teeth, the researchers discovered that they are not lone curved and serrated, aiding successful tearing isolated flesh, but besides diagnostic a unusual orangish line. Closer introspection of the discoloration revealed it to beryllium the effect of a bladed overgarment of iron. They surmised that the metallic is simply a protective furniture that helps the teeth support their deadly edge. The squad past looked astatine samples of teeth from different members of the show lizard household and recovered that immoderate of them, too, featured the robust coating.

The finding, reported successful the diary Nature Ecology & Evolution, was the effect of a blessed accident. The scientists weren’t studying Komodo dragon teeth for the heck of it oregon to assistance substance nightmares (although they undoubtedly succeeded successful that goal), but to summation insights into the feeding habits of past predators similar Tyrannosaurs, which had likewise shaped teeth. The unexpected find of robust successful Komodo dragon teeth is present prompting the squad to analyse whether this diagnostic besides existed successful dinosaurs.

“We privation to usage this similarity to larn much astir however carnivorous dinosaurs mightiness person ate and if they utilized robust successful their teeth the aforesaid mode arsenic the Komodo dragon,” said Aaron LeBlanc, a lecturer successful dental biosciences astatine King’s College London who worked connected the survey successful a press release.  

However, arsenic dinosaur teeth go fossilized, their chemic creation changes, making it impossible—or astatine slightest presently impossible—to observe whether robust was erstwhile contiguous successful their teeth. Still, immoderate similarities betwixt the chompers of Komodo dragons and tyrannosaurs were found.

“Larger meat-eating dinosaurs, similar tyrannosaurs, did alteration the operation of the enamel itself connected the cutting edges of their teeth,” said LeBlanc. “So, portion Komodo dragons person altered the chemistry of their teeth, immoderate dinosaurs altered the operation of their dental enamel to support a crisp cutting edge.”

LeBlanc hasn’t fixed up hope, though. With further study, it’s imaginable caller methods could beryllium devised to observe different markers of robust successful Komodo dragon teeth. Those techniques, successful turn, could theoretically past beryllium applied to the hunt for robust successful fossilized dinosaur teeth.

If this is each terrifying to you, it whitethorn beryllium immoderate comfortableness that Komodo dragon attacks connected humans are reasonably rare, though erstwhile they bash happen, they are absolutely brutal. Just much confirmation that they are, indeed, the astir metallic of each surviving lizards.