So over thousands of years, the
Draco volans, also commonly known as the common flying dragon, is a species of lizard in the family Agamidae. The species is endemic to Southeast Asia. Like other members of genus Draco, this species has the ability to glide using winglike lateral extensions of skin called patagia.
Flying Dragons
Scaly membranes between their forelegs and hindlegs, supported by an enlarged set of ribs, allow Dracos to glide up to 160 feet from tree to tree. There are more than 40 species of flying dragons, but all of them are small, with an average size of about 3 inches.
Oriental dragons, for example, are all wingless (but still able to fly). The winged dragon seems to have appeared in Western mythology during Medieval times. In the West, a wingless dragon was sometimes also referred to as a drake or wyrm.
Draco lizards have the amazing ability to fly from tree to tree in search of food, a mate or to avoid predators.
These dragons, however, cannot fly, and don't breathe fire. These dragons are called komodo dragons. Komodo dragons live on a few small islands in Indonesia, which is in Asia. Komodo dragons are huge reptiles that can grow to ten feet long and weigh 350 pounds.
With 31 known species of flying dragon lizards ranging from Australia, Philippines, Borneo, India, Malaysia, to Indonesia these lizards are well established. Flying lizards live in tropical rainforests.
Chinese dragons are occasionally depicted with bat-like wings growing out of the front limbs, but most do not have wings, as their ability to fly (and control rain/water, etc.) is mystical and not seen as a result of their physical attributes.
Some people keep these little lizards as a pet, though they are tricky to care for, especially for a beginner. Flying lizards are skittish and need a huge enclosure full of vegetation and even small trees.
Speed: A half-dragon has wings. Unless the base creature has a better fly speed, the half-dragon can fly at twice the creature's base land speed (average maneuverability). Melee: A half-dragon has two claw attacks and a bite attack.
Dubbed "dragon of death" by paleontologists, two giant flying reptiles were discovered in the Plottier Formation, an outcrop located in the province of Mendoza. The two specimens' wingspans measured approximately 23 feet (7 meters) wide and 30 feet (9 m) wide, respectively.
To date, no fire-breathing animals have been found. However, it wouldn't be impossible for an animal to expel flames.
In real life, probably not. While it makes sense that massive, unidentified bones combined with smaller creatures that look like they could be dragon relatives inspired the legends, we'll have to be satisfied with fictional dragon depictions to fuel the fire of our mythical mentality.
Researchers have calculated this upper-limit for flying animals at 41kg with a wingspan of 5.1m. Beyond this threshold, larger wings cannot compensate for proportionally massive bodies. This is the backbone for what many scientists say about dragons: they are too heavy, and too big, to obtain powered flight.
The tiny lizards are known as "Draco volans," and over the course of thousands of years, they developed an amazing way to evade predators: Flight.
Chinese dragons are wingless, serpentine creatures. While they do not have wings, they are able to magically fly through clouds. If you look at paintings or carvings of Chinese dragons, you may notice that they are a hodge-podge of 9 other animals.
Fossil Identified as Pterosaur, 'the Closest Thing We Have to a Living Dragon'
Marine Iguanas are covered in rough scales and have a hardened look, making them look similar to a dragon. Their claws hands are large and equipped with sharp claws. Marine Iguanas are not able to breathe underwater, but they are able to hold their breath and dive for around 30 to 40 minutes.
Japanese Dragon Symbolism
Unlike the dragons found in Western mythology, Asian dragons don't have wings, but some can fly. It's believed that Asian dragons can fly due to a knot on top of its head called Chi'ih muh, which magically enables it to fly.
Unlike most other dragons, Korean dragons do not have wings, but they can still fly. While the exact make up of the Kirin and Korean dragon is hard to determine, since different sources say different things.
The first dragon myths appear with the Sumerian legends of the god-mother Tiamat who transforms herself into a legged, horned serpent, and of the snake Zu who steals the law tablets. Dragons appear in Chinese and Indian legends in about 2700 B.C., and in Egypt a creation myth describes the dragon Apep.
This dragon-like pterosaur dominated the skies above the Eromanga Sea millions of years ago. Meet Thapunngaka shawi, the largest flying reptile ever discovered in Australia, with a wingspan of 7m and a mouth full of up to 40 sharp teeth.
A rare lizard has been rediscovered 50 years after it was last seen. Had it become extinct, the Victorian grassland earless dragon would have been the first known reptile from mainland Australia to have been lost. Its rediscovery gives a second chance to help it avoid this fate.