But are they as scary as sharks with frickin' laser beams attached to their heads?

Um... and notice the thing about climbing the ladder...

(CNN) -- An Indonesian fisherman has been killed by Komodo dragons after he was attacked while trespassing on a remote island in search of fruit, officials said Tuesday.

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Komodo dragons, the world's heaviest lizards, can grow up to 3 meters (10 feet) in length and have a toxic bite that they use to kill prey such as buffalo, returning to feast when the animal succumbs to the poison.

Despite their ungainly appearance, the carnivorous reptiles can run as fast as a dog in short bursts, jump up on their hind legs, and kill animals with a blow of their powerful tails.

Attacks on humans are rare, but Monday's incident is the latest in a series in which the monster lizards -- which have forked tongues and fearsome claws --have killed or injured people.

Last month a park ranger survived after a Komodo dragon climbed the ladder into his hut and savaged his hand and foot. In 2007 an eight-year-old boy died after being mauled.

In June last year, a group of divers who were stranded on an island in the national park -- the dragons' only natural habitat -- had to fend off several attacks from the reptiles before they were rescued.

Park rangers also tell the cautionary tale of a Swiss tourist who vanished leaving nothing but a pair of spectacles and a camera after an encounter with the dragons several years ago.

And these lizards have a whole national park for them to play in? There isn't a Mr. John Hammond in charge anywhere, is there?

Update 5/20/09: Their bite is not only filled with horrible bacteria, but venom.

Indonesia had its 19th human death of bird flu this year

Do you know why they are not participating with the World Health Organization?

However, Indonesia since March has refused to share human bird flu samples with the World Health Organisation (WHO) after an Australian company developed a vaccine for commercial sale using an Indonesian sample without Jakarta's knowledge.

The government says foreign drug manufacturers are developing commercial bird flu vaccines using samples from poor countries such as Indonesia that ultimately may be unable to afford or even access them.

Indonesia has called for changes in WHO rules that would prevent samples from being used to develop vaccines unless all countries can access the scientific information without fear of patents or copyrights - and will continue its ban on sharing samples until that happens.

The issue is expected to be high on the agenda of the WHO's annual World Health Assembly, which begins Monday in Geneva.

'Hobbit' race real

JAKARTA: The 18,000yr-old skull and other remains of a small hominid found in the island of Flores, Indonesia belong to a species new to science, researchers concluded after months of study.

Scientists belonging to the Florida State University had found the fossils in 2003, in a limestone cave on the Indonesian island. The find was labeled LB1 but nick-named 'Hobbit' because of its unusual features and likely resemblance to the dwarf-like creature from the J. R. R. Tolkien trilogy 'Lord of the Rings'.

The features had led the FU team to believe they had the remains of an as-yet-undiscovered human species. Other scientists argued that it was an ordinary ancient human who had probably suffered microcephalia – a rare pathological condition where the head is disproportionately small and usually accompanied by mental retardation.

Lead researcher and paleoneurologist Prof. Dean Falk said his team was now “absolutely convinced” that their find was indeed of a new human species. The scientists have labeled it as Homo Floresiensis

Now after more than two years of analysis, the team reverted to their first hypothesis that the remains belonged to a species new to science. In their study, the scientists analyzed several endocasts – computer-generated impressions of the brain structure taken from the hollow within the skulls. The endocasts included 19 of modern humans nine of whom were microcephalic; one belonged to a modern human dwarf of a similar height as LB1.