= Komodo dragon
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= Varanus komodoensis
{c}
{synonym}
The <Komodo dragon>, <Varanus komodoensis>, is a large predatory <lizard> native to Indonesian islands. It takes animal prey and also scavenges. The scientific name identifies the <species>, while the familiar name does not denote a separate evolutionary group from other lizards.<Komodo dragon by the Smithsonian National Zoo>[taxonomic information,native range and food habits]{ref}
Its reproduction provides a striking example of facultative <parthenogenesis>: production of offspring without fertilization can occur in a species that also reproduces sexually. A 2006 study examined offspring from two females isolated from males at separate institutions. <Microsatellite> genotypes and reproductive histories supported maternal-only inheritance; one female later also produced sexually conceived offspring.<Parthenogenesis in Komodo dragons by Phillip C. Watts and others>[Abstract and supplementary genotyping/reproductive histories]{ref}
Genetic comparison matters because the absence of a male at laying does not alone exclude earlier mating or stored sperm. As a simplified example, a mother carrying alleles $A$ and $B$ at a locus might produce a parthenogenetic offspring carrying two copies of $A$. That offspring contains only a maternal allele but is not an identical genetic copy of its mother. Evidence from several loci is more informative than this single-locus illustration.
The observation therefore distinguishes <parthenogenesis> from simple cloning and shows that reproductive mode can vary within a <species>. It does not establish that all isolated females must reproduce this way or that every form of animal parthenogenesis has the same genetic mechanism.
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