Komodo National Park was established by the Indonesian government in 1980 and is one of 50 national parks in the country. The whole park includes three main islands, Komodo, Rinca and Padar and many small uninhabited islands, composed of an ecosystem and a unique biodiversity in the world.
The site is home to the famous Komodo dragons (or giant monitor lizards, Varanus komodoensis) which are said to number between 2,700 and 3,000. They cannot be found anywhere else. The indigenous ata modo tribe, about 2,500 people, have lived on this island for centuries and coexist with the dragons they call “sebae” (brother or half).
The site was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1991. The increase in tourism in the western part of the nearby Indonesian island of Flores is a major challenge for the preservation of biodiversity.
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