If Dragons were real...

For starters - What would be their...

...common physical traits?

They all had teeth and looked like you should hide your children from them.

...intelligence, or lack of (sentient, animal, alien, combination)?

They clearly went extinct so... pretty stupid.

...culture or ecology?

Vain. They loved getting their portrait taken. Not big on ecology, though, what with the fire breathing and all.

...ability to coexist in a world of humans (or inability)?

Oh, we couldn't coexist. Dragons demand the regular sacrifice of beautiful virgins and humans are only willing to part with the ugly ones. War would be inevitable.

...reasons for different descriptions by different human cultures?

Different drug of choice.
 

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They would almost certainly be fire-breathing wyverns instead. No vertebrates has ever evolved six functional limbs.

Most likely, but I don't think that would be absolutely necessary. Evolutionary aberations happen all the time. Just because this has never successfully or functionally occured in a vertebrate, I don't think it follows that it can't. But, the odds are you're probably right.B-)
 


This one is simple - different species in different regions.

Yeah, the simplest answer is probably the best. Definitely makes the most sense.

But now, what about Intelligence?

That docufiction basically presented Dragons as an extinct animal/dinosaur. What if Dragons, or at least one or some of the different species, had developed Human Equivalent Intelligence and Sentience? What form might that Intelligence take?

I think we could assume from myth, that even the Intelligent species of Dragon never developed the skill (or need) to build shelters, or probably even the need to use tools (although that probably eliminates an evolutionary impetus for higher intelligence...). But, assuming a Human Equivalent Intelligence, in what manner would a Dragons Intelligence be expressed?

For comparison, I remember a book by Dean Koontz called Watchers, that had a Dog with Human Equivalent Intelligence. But, despite it's Intelligence, it was still very much Canine in it's instincts and motivations. Although there was commonality between Humans and the Intelligent Canine, it's mind was still rather Alien compared to us. Such as, in Canines, scent seems much more dominant than other senses. I would imagine a Canine language (a language developed and evolved along with Canines, rather than adopting a Human language, although I'm not positing that Canines could speak like Humans) may have a lot more adjectives/expressions concerning smell than a comparable Human language. Another example could be Octopuses. Of the more Intelligent animals, many scientists believe that Octopuses are more likely to develop higher Intelligence and Sentience than other animals (even more so than Dolphins and Whales). It seems to me that the Intelligence and Sentience of a Cephalopod would be very Alien compared to our own.

Based on Myth and the assumption of Intelligence: What would a Dragon Intelligence be like? And by extension, what would Dragon culture and social structure be like?

B-)
 
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I'd go with dragons having above average intelligence. With their shape-changing abilities and desire for riches and power, I could see them blending into human culture. Heads of state, corporate presidents, leaders of gangs like the Yakuza, and so forth.
 

Taking a look at dolphins and whales, it is entirely possible that they are as intelligent as we are but have no need for things like opposable thumbs or the need to build things because of their environment.

So, "real" dragons, if they were intelligent, are effectively the ultimate predator and thus would also have no need for opposable thumbs or to build things. Thus, while sentient, no signs would exist of their "civilization" because, unlike humans, they are solitary predators, having no need to develop cultures or societies.
 

But now, what about Intelligence?

Well, not all of the mythical versions have dragons as intelligent. Some species would have it, others not.

That docufiction basically presented Dragons as an extinct animal/dinosaur.

If you are going with the dinosaur ancestor route, then why not recall that there are already some stunningly intelligent dinosaur descendants: African Grey Parrots, for example, which in some ways seem to be cognitively equivalent to a 3 to 5 year old human. At least one has been known to have a vocabulary of 950 words (when over 70% of communication in English is carried out using only 7000 words), and able to greet Jane Goodall with the question, "Got a chimp?" based on seeing pictures of her with a chimp.

What if Dragons, or at least one or some of the different species, had developed Human Equivalent Intelligence and Sentience? What form might that Intelligence take?

First you'd have to define "intelligence", and trying to do that is apt to start an argument. :)
 


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