The king cobra (Ophiophagus hannah) is the world's longest venomous snake, with a length up to 5.6 m (18.5 ft). This species, which preys chiefly on other snakes, is found predominantly in forests from India through Southeast Asia to Indonesia and the Philippines. Despite the word "cobra" in its name, this snake is not a member of Naja (true cobra) but belongs to its own genus. The king cobra is considered to be a very dangerous snake.It has cultural significance as well.
Description
The king cobra averages at 3 to 4 m (9.8 to 13 ft) in length and
typically weighs about 6 kg (13 lb). This species is more slender than
the Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnake and the Gaboon Viper,
who compete for the title of the heaviest venomous snake, but at
average sizes, it is much longer and will weigh approximately the same
as the two bulky vipers. The longest known specimen was kept captive at
the London Zoo, and grew to around 18.5 to 18.8 ft (5.6 to 5.7 m) before being euthanised upon the outbreak of World War II. The heaviest wild specimen was caught at Royal Island Club in Singapore in 1951, which weighed 12 kilograms (26 lb) and measured 4.8 m (16 ft), though an even heavier captive specimen was kept at New York Zoological Park and was measured as 12.7 kilograms (28 lb) at 4.4 m (14 ft) long in 1972.The length and mass of the snakes highly depend on their localities and
some other factors. Despite their large sizes, typical king cobras are
fast and agile.
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 expandable 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
wild king cobra is about 20 years.
The dorsal scales along the center of the king cobra's body have 15
rows. Males have 235 to 250 ventral scales, while females have 239 to
265. The subcaudal scales are single or paired in each row, numbering 83
to 96 in males and 77 to 98 in females.
Behaviour
A king cobra, like other snakes, receives chemical information via its forked tongue, which picks up scent particles and transfers them to a special sensory receptor (Jacobson's organ) located in the roof of its mouth.This is akin to the human sense of smell.
When the scent of a meal is detected, the snake flicks its tongue to
gauge the prey's location (the twin forks of the tongue acting in
stereo); it also uses its keen eyesight (king cobras are able to detect
moving prey almost 100 m [330 feet] away), intelligence, and sensitivity to earth-borne vibration to track its prey.
Following envenomation, the king cobra will begin to swallow its struggling prey while its toxins begin the digestion
of its victim. King cobras, like all snakes, have flexible jaws. The
jaw bones are connected by pliable ligaments, enabling the lower jaw
bones to move independently. This allows the king cobra to swallow its
prey whole, as well as letting it swallow prey much larger than its
head.
King cobras are able to hunt throughout the day, although it is rarely seen at night, leading most herpetologists to classify it as a diurnal species.
DIET
The king cobra's generic name, Ophiophagus is a Greek-derived word which means "snake-eater", and its diet consists primarily of other snakes, including ratsnakes, small pythons and even other venomous snakes such as various members of the true cobras (of the genus Naja), and even the much more venomous members of the krait family.[12][13] When food is scarce, they may also feed on other small vertebrates, such as lizards, birds, and rodents. In some cases, the cobra may "constrict" its prey, such as birds and larger rodents, using its muscular body, though this is uncommon. After a large meal, the snake may live for many months without another one because of its slow metabolic rate. The king cobra's most common meal is the ratsnake; pursuit of this species often brings king cobras close to human settlements.
DEFENCE
When confronted, this species will quickly attempt to escape and avoid any sort of confrontation.However, if provoked, the king cobra can be highly aggressive.
When concerned, it rears up the anterior portion (usually one-third) of its body when extending the neck, showing the fangs and hissing loudly. It can be easily irritated by closely approaching objects or sudden movements. When raising its body, the king cobra can still move forward to strike with a long distance and people may misjudge the safe zone. The king cobra may deliver multiple bites in a single attack but adults are known to bite and hold on. In spite of being a highly dangerous snake, it prefers to escape first unless there is no way to go.Since this species is secretive and tends to inhabit less-populated forested regions and dense jungle, it is rarely encountered and seldom comes across humans, except those individuals which are caught for performances and thus many victims bitten by king cobras are actually snake charmers.
If a king cobra encounters a natural predator, such as the mongoose, which has resistance to the neurotoxins, the snake generally tries to flee. If unable to do so, it forms the distinctive cobra hood and emits a hiss, sometimes with feigned closed-mouth strikes. These efforts usually prove to be very effective, especially since it is much more dangerous than other mongoose prey, as well as being much too large for the small mammal to kill with ease.
A good defense against a cobra for anyone who accidentally encounters this snake is to slowly remove a shirt or hat and toss it to the ground while backing away.
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