*KING COBRA*
Family: Elapidae
Classified: Oiphiophagus
Indian Cobra: Naja Naja\
Spitting Cobra: Naja Nigricollis
Egyptian Cobra : Naja Haje
Type:Reptile
Diet:Carnivore
Average life span in the wild:20 years
Size:13 ft (4 m)
Weight:Up to 20 lbs (9 kg)
Group name:Quiver
The King Cobra (Ophiophagus hannah) lives in the grasslands and rainforests of Southeast Asia, including China and India. This snake is generally shy, avoiding human contact, but can be very aggressive if cornered or if it feels its young are threatened. They are the largest of all venomous snakes, capable of growing up to 18 feet in length. Although their venom isn’t the most toxic, it can deliver up to seven millimeters worth of venom, enough to kill twenty-men or an elephant with a single bite
Characteristics
The skin of this snake is either olive-green, tan, or black and it has faint, pale yellow cross bands down the length of the body. The belly is cream or pale yellow, and the scales are smooth. Juveniles are shiny black with narrow yellow bands(can be mistaken for a Banded Krait but readily identified with its expanded hood). The head of a mature snake can be quite massive and bulky in appearance, though like all snakes, they can expand their jaws to swallow large prey items. It has proteroglyph dentition, meaning it has two short, fixed fangs in the front of the mouth which channel venom into the prey like hypodermic needles. The male is larger and thicker than the female. The average lifespan of a King Cobra is about 20 years
Habitat
The King Cobra is distributed across South and South-east Asia, but is not common. It lives in dense highland forests, preferring areas dotted with lakes and streams. King Cobra populations have dropped in some areas of its range because of the destruction of forests, but despite this the snake is not listed by the IUCN as in danger of becoming extinct. It is, however, listed as an Appendix II Animal within CITES
Food:
The King Cobra eats mice, rats, snakes, lizards, birds, frogs and fish. Like all snakes, they swallow the prey whole, head first. The top and bottom jaws are attached to each other with stretchy ligaments, which let the snake swallow animals wider that itself. Snakes can't chew their prey; food is digested by very strong acids in the snake's stomach. It can go without food for months
Reproduction
King Cobras are one of the only snakes known to construct nests for their young. The females mate once a year and during mating season gather together dead leaves, branches and other vegetation to form its nest. The female King Cobra will lay approximately 50 leathery eggs in the nest and will sit atop them for the entire incubation period of sixty to eighty days. The males will stay in the vicinity for the duration of this period. The females are notoriously aggressive during this time and won’t hesitate to attack any living creature if near the proximity of the nest. The hatching young tend to be black with yellow or white bars traversing their bodies. They are about eighteen to twenty inches long and are born with enough venom to kill an adult human.
Venom
The King Cobra’s venom consists of many different proteins and polypeptides. Their venom is pumped through their half-inch fangs, into their victim causing neurotoxic symptoms. Symptoms include severe pain, blurred vision, drowsiness, paralysis, cardiovascular irregularities and collapse, coma and death. An antidote is available, but only in small quantities. Luckily the snakes tend to be shy and try to avoid contact with humans and would-be predators.
KING COBRA NEST
King Cobra's "claim to fame" is the fact that they are the only snake to construct a nest for the sole purpose of laying their eggs. A King Cobra Nest is constructed by the female typically from rotten leaves and vegetation. The female King Cobra will loop her coils over loose debris and drag the material to create her nest. In most cases, a Cobra nest is nothing more then a simple pile of leaves mounded above the ground were she will lay between 40 and 60 eggs. In some cases however, maybe due to experience, the female actually constructs a lower “Egg Chamber”, with an upper area for her to lay and incubate. King Cobra eggs incubate after 65 to 80 days
predators of a king cobra
Humans are the number 1 predator of King Cobras. The loss of forest has added to this species becoming more rare throughout time
SOME INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT KINGS COBRA
Classified: Oiphiophagus
Indian Cobra: Naja Naja\
Spitting Cobra: Naja Nigricollis
Egyptian Cobra : Naja Haje
Type:Reptile
Diet:Carnivore
Average life span in the wild:20 years
Size:13 ft (4 m)
Weight:Up to 20 lbs (9 kg)
Group name:Quiver
The King Cobra (Ophiophagus hannah) lives in the grasslands and rainforests of Southeast Asia, including China and India. This snake is generally shy, avoiding human contact, but can be very aggressive if cornered or if it feels its young are threatened. They are the largest of all venomous snakes, capable of growing up to 18 feet in length. Although their venom isn’t the most toxic, it can deliver up to seven millimeters worth of venom, enough to kill twenty-men or an elephant with a single bite
Characteristics
The skin of this snake is either olive-green, tan, or black and it has faint, pale yellow cross bands down the length of the body. The belly is cream or pale yellow, and the scales are smooth. Juveniles are shiny black with narrow yellow bands(can be mistaken for a Banded Krait but readily identified with its expanded hood). The head of a mature snake can be quite massive and bulky in appearance, though like all snakes, they can expand their jaws to swallow large prey items. It has proteroglyph dentition, meaning it has two short, fixed fangs in the front of the mouth which channel venom into the prey like hypodermic needles. The male is larger and thicker than the female. The average lifespan of a King Cobra is about 20 years
Habitat
The King Cobra is distributed across South and South-east Asia, but is not common. It lives in dense highland forests, preferring areas dotted with lakes and streams. King Cobra populations have dropped in some areas of its range because of the destruction of forests, but despite this the snake is not listed by the IUCN as in danger of becoming extinct. It is, however, listed as an Appendix II Animal within CITES
Food:
The King Cobra eats mice, rats, snakes, lizards, birds, frogs and fish. Like all snakes, they swallow the prey whole, head first. The top and bottom jaws are attached to each other with stretchy ligaments, which let the snake swallow animals wider that itself. Snakes can't chew their prey; food is digested by very strong acids in the snake's stomach. It can go without food for months
Reproduction
King Cobras are one of the only snakes known to construct nests for their young. The females mate once a year and during mating season gather together dead leaves, branches and other vegetation to form its nest. The female King Cobra will lay approximately 50 leathery eggs in the nest and will sit atop them for the entire incubation period of sixty to eighty days. The males will stay in the vicinity for the duration of this period. The females are notoriously aggressive during this time and won’t hesitate to attack any living creature if near the proximity of the nest. The hatching young tend to be black with yellow or white bars traversing their bodies. They are about eighteen to twenty inches long and are born with enough venom to kill an adult human.
Venom
The King Cobra’s venom consists of many different proteins and polypeptides. Their venom is pumped through their half-inch fangs, into their victim causing neurotoxic symptoms. Symptoms include severe pain, blurred vision, drowsiness, paralysis, cardiovascular irregularities and collapse, coma and death. An antidote is available, but only in small quantities. Luckily the snakes tend to be shy and try to avoid contact with humans and would-be predators.
KING COBRA NEST
King Cobra's "claim to fame" is the fact that they are the only snake to construct a nest for the sole purpose of laying their eggs. A King Cobra Nest is constructed by the female typically from rotten leaves and vegetation. The female King Cobra will loop her coils over loose debris and drag the material to create her nest. In most cases, a Cobra nest is nothing more then a simple pile of leaves mounded above the ground were she will lay between 40 and 60 eggs. In some cases however, maybe due to experience, the female actually constructs a lower “Egg Chamber”, with an upper area for her to lay and incubate. King Cobra eggs incubate after 65 to 80 days
predators of a king cobra
Humans are the number 1 predator of King Cobras. The loss of forest has added to this species becoming more rare throughout time
SOME INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT KINGS COBRA
- King Cobra young are called hatchlings since they come from eggs. Hatchlings are about 50cm long
- Cobras are not blind, in fact they see very well even at night
- Cobras have a "Jacobsen's Organ" (like most snakes) that gives it super smelling ability. They can sense tiny changes in temperature, which helps them track their prey at night
- Cobras are at the top of the food chain. Their only natural predators are the mongoose, and man
- Cobras don't always inject venom when they bite something. They can do a "dry bite" if they want to
KING COBRA NEST
KING WITH EGGS
KIGNGs PREY
BABY KING
For more information on KING COBRA visit www.agumberainforest.com
SAVE FOREST..............SAVE KINGS