Editing Komodo dragon (section)

===Senses===
[[File:Komodo dragons video.ogv|thumbtime=0:02|Komodo dragon using its tongue to sample the air|thumb|left]]
As with other varanids, Komodo dragons have only a single ear bone, the [[stapes]], for transferring vibrations from the [[tympanic membrane]] to the [[cochlea]]. This arrangement means they are likely restricted to sounds in the 400 to 2,000 [[hertz]] range, compared to humans who hear between 20 and 20,000 hertz.<ref name="sciam"/><ref name="bbc">{{cite web |publisher=BBC |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/animals/features/336feature1.shtml |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061116030327/http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/animals/features/336feature1.shtml |archive-date=16 November 2006 |title=Komodo Conundrum |access-date=25 November 2007}}</ref> They were formerly thought to be [[deaf]] when a study reported no agitation in wild Komodo dragons in response to whispers, raised voices, or shouts. This was disputed when [[London Zoo]] employee Joan Procter trained a captive specimen to come out to feed at the sound of her voice, even when she could not be seen.<ref name="liz">{{cite book |last=Badger |first=David |title=Lizards: A Natural History of Some Uncommon Creatures, Extraordinary Chameleons, Iguanas, Geckos, and More |publisher=Voyageur Press |location=Stillwater, MN |year=2002 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/lizards00davi/page/32 32, 52, 78, 81, 84, 140–145, 151] |isbn=978-0-89658-520-1 |url=https://archive.org/details/lizards00davi/page/32 }}</ref>{{rp|52}}

The Komodo dragon can see objects as far away as {{cvt|300|m|ft}}, but because its retinas only contain [[cone cells|cones]], it is thought to have poor night vision. It can distinguish colours, but has poor visual discrimination of stationary objects.<ref name="nzpfactsheet">{{cite web|publisher=[[National Zoological Park (United States)|National Zoological Park]] |url=http://nationalzoo.si.edu/Animals/ReptilesAmphibians/Facts/FactSheets/Komododragon.cfm |title=Komodo Dragon Fact Sheet |access-date=25 November 2007|date=25 April 2016 }}</ref>

As with many other reptiles, the Komodo dragon primarily relies on its tongue to detect, [[taste]], and [[Odor|smell]] [[Stimulus (physiology)|stimuli]], with the [[vomeronasal]] sense using the [[Jacobson's organ]], rather than using the nostrils.<ref name="docent">{{cite web |publisher=[[Singapore Zoological Gardens]] |url=http://szgdocent.org/resource/rr/c-komodo.htm |title= Komodo Dragon|access-date=21 December 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050214110617/http://szgdocent.org/resource/rr/c-komodo.htm |archive-date=14 February 2005 }}</ref> With the help of a favorable wind and its habit of swinging its head from side to side as it walks, a Komodo dragon may be able to detect carrion from {{cvt|4|–|9.5|km}} away.<ref name="nzpfactsheet"/> Their tongue-flicking behavior is similar to that of snakes.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Maho |first1=Tea |last2=Reisz |first2=Robert R. |title=Exceptionally rapid tooth development and ontogenetic changes in the feeding apparatus of the Komodo dragon |journal=PLoS ONE |date=February 7, 2024 |volume=19}}</ref> It only has a few [[taste bud]]s in the back of its throat.<ref name="docent"/> Its scales, some of which are reinforced with bone, have [[sensory plaque]]s connected to nerves to facilitate its sense of touch. The scales around the ears, lips, chin, and soles of the feet may have three or more sensory plaques.<ref name="location"/>
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