Indonesia to close island in bid to save Komodo dragons

FILE PHOTO: A Komodo Dragon is seen in Komodo National Park, Indonesia April 6, 2018. REUTERS/Henning Gloystein

JAKARTA (Reuters) - Indonesia plans to close its eastern island of Komodo to the public next year in a bid to conserve rare Komodo dragons, the largest living species of lizard, a provincial official said on Tuesday.

The island is part of Komodo National Park, a conservation area between the islands of Sumbawa and Flores visited by more than 176,000 tourists from all over the world in 2018.