Snake cobra - interesting facts. The royal cobra like a snake is very dangerous and fast

It is one of the most poisonous and extremely dangerous reptiles on Earth. Its poison is very toxic. There are sixteen species of cobras, and all of them are extremely dangerous.

Habitat

Cobra mostly inhabit the Old World - Africa (almost the whole continent), South and Central Asia (Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka). As already mentioned, it is a poisonous snake. Cobra is very thermophilic - she will not live where the snow falls and falls in the winter. Perhaps the exception is only the Central Asian cobra. She lives in Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan. The more arid the places, the more preferable for these reptiles. Most often they choose bushes, jungles, deserts and semi-deserts. Sometimes they can be seen on the banks of rivers, but more often they avoid damp places. There are also cobra in mountainous areas, but not more than 2400 meters above sea level.

Reproduction

These snakes reproduce once a year. Most often this happens in January-February or in the spring. The fertility of these reptiles largely depends on their species. One female can lay off eight to seventy eggs.

The collar cobra is the only one of all species that gives birth to live cubs. She is capable of giving birth to sixty kids. During this period, the royal and Indian cobra are very aggressive. They protect their offspring, driving animals and people away from the nest. This behavior is not typical for them and is only manifested during the breeding of offspring.

Who is afraid of cobra

Despite the fact that this snake is extremely dangerous, it also has serious enemies. Her cubs can be eaten by larger reptiles. Adult specimens can be destroyed by meerkats and mongooses. These animals do not have immunity against the poison of cobras, nevertheless they are able to deftly distract the attention of the snake with their false attacks. They catch the right moment and inflict a deadly bite on the back of the head. Cobra, having met a surikat or a mongoose on his way, has practically no chance of salvation.

Indian Cobra

This species is most often found in Africa and South Asia. Quite often it is called "spectacled cobra". This name she received because of the characteristic pattern on the back of the hood. It represents two neat rings with an arch. When this poisonous cobra defends, it raises the front of the body almost vertically, and a hood appears behind her head. The length of the snake is 1 meter eighty centimeters. It feeds mainly amphibians - rodents and small lizards, will not refuse from bird eggs. This is a very prolific poisonous snake. Cobra Naja naja often spends up to 45 eggs! It is interesting that the male watches for the safety of the clutch.

Spitting Cobra

This is a special subspecies of Indian cobra. She shoots a poison at the enemy, located at a distance of up to two meters, and is able to hit the target with a diameter of up to two centimeters. And, I must say, the snake is distinguished by its high accuracy. To kill a victim, getting poison on the body is not enough. The poison will not penetrate through the skin, but it is very dangerous when you get on the mucous membrane. Therefore, the main goal of these snakes is their eyes. If the victim hits accurately, the victim may completely lose sight. To avoid this, it is necessary to rinse the eyes with plenty of water.

Egyptian cobra

Distributed in the Arabian Peninsula and in Africa. This is also a poisonous snake. The Cobra Naja haje grows to two meters in length. Her hood is much smaller than that of her Indian cousin. In the ancient Egyptians it symbolized power, and its poisonous bite was used as a means of killing in public executions.

Snake Royal Cobra (Hamadriad)

Many believe that this is the biggest poisonous snake in the world. The length of adults is more than three meters, but cases are registered and more impressive - 5.5 meters! This is a mistaken opinion. There is a large reptile than the royal cobra. Against the anaconda, it may seem just a baby - after all, some individuals of this species reach a length of ten meters!

The Hamadriad is widespread in India, south of the Himalayas, in Southern China, the Philippines, the Great Sunda Islands to Bali, and Indochina. Most of the time the reptile is on the ground, but at the same time can perfectly creep along the trees and swim. According to experts, this amazing creature - the royal cobra. How can a snake have such impressive dimensions? Many are surprised by this. Indeed, its size is just awesome, although it does not look too heavy and massive, like, for example, the python.

Cobras color

It is highly variable due to the extensive habitat. Most often - yellowish green with black rings. On the front part of the trunk, they are narrower and not very distinct, towards the tail they become wider and brighter. The color of young individuals is more saturated.

Reproduction

This is one of the few types of snakes, the males of which, when confronted in the same territory, arrange ritual battles, but do not bite each other. Naturally, the winner remains with the female. Pairing is preceded by a period of courtship, after which the male becomes clear that his "chosen one" is not dangerous for him. About a month later the female lays eggs. Before this event takes place, the king's cobra is engaged in the construction of the nest. Like a snake that does not have limbs, the beak can cope with this task? It turns out that the front part of the torso rakes dry leaves and branches into a pile of round form.

The number of eggs varies from twenty to forty. As a rule, the mantle is guarded by the female, having preliminarily covered it with leaves and placed on its apex. But there are cases when a male participates in the guard. The incubation period lasts about a hundred days. Shortly before the birth of the offspring the female leaves the nest to get food for herself. After the birth of the cubs about a day are kept near the nest. Since their appearance, they are completely independent, have a poison from birth, but in very small numbers, which allows them to hunt small rodents, and sometimes even insects.

Lethal Weapons

How does this dangerous snake hit its victim? Cobra's royal poison is very strong poison. Its volume depends on the size and weight of the victim. Usually its amount is several times the lethal dose. It is interesting that eating a poisoned prey, the snake itself does not suffer at all.

Usually, in order to scare off a person, the cobra bites, but does not allow poison, as it is necessary for her to hunt. But in no case can this be hoped for! The poison of a cobra can kill an elephant in a few hours. He paralyzes the muscular system, and the victim dies of suffocation. When a poison enters the body, a person dies after 15 minutes.

For scientists, this snake is of great interest. Cobra, the poison of which, undoubtedly, is very toxic, can be useful for a person. Than? During the research it was found out that its poison in small doses can be used to make valuable medications that positively affect the cardiovascular and nervous systems, normalize blood pressure. Scientists from all over the world study this poison for more than fifty years, and despite such a long period of research, they discover in it ever new compounds that are useful for modern medicine.

Many people believe that cobra is very aggressive. This is not true. They are very calm, you can even call their behavior phlegmatic. If you study well the habits of aspids, then they can be controlled, which is often demonstrated by skilful "spellcasters" of snakes. The royal cobra is a dangerous creature, but you should know that when you meet a person, it does not attack, but defends itself.