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Scientific American

August 12, 2013

When A Komodo Dragon Caused A Salmonella Outbreak in a Bunch of Kids

When we get infected by salmonella, it usually comes from things like undercooked meat or contaminated eggs. Sometimes, it comes from sharing germs with Komodo dragons, as some Colorado children found out in 1996.

By Jason G. Goldman

This article was published in Scientific American’s former blog network and reflects the views of the author, not necessarily those of Scientific American

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When we get infected by salmonella, it usually comes from things like undercooked meat or contaminated eggs. Sometimes, it comes from sharing germs with Komodo dragons, as some Colorado children found out in 1996.

Read about this surprising origin for a salmonella outbreak in my latest piece at Nautilus Magazine: The Near-Mythical Beast That Spread an All-Too-Real Disease

Image: Komodo dragon at the San Diego Zoo copyright the author. Photographed in July 2013.

Jason G. Goldman is a science journalist based in Los Angeles. He has written about animal behavior, wildlife biology, conservation, and ecology for Scientific American, Los Angeles magazine, the Washington Post, the Guardian, the BBC, Conservation magazine, and elsewhere. He contributes to Scientific American's "60-Second Science" podcast, and is co-editor of Science Blogging: The Essential Guide (Yale University Press). He enjoys sharing his wildlife knowledge on television and on the radio, and often speaks to the public about wildlife and science communication.

More by Jason G. Goldman