Tags: Common Cobra | Naja naja atra | snake

Profile
Inhabits mountainous areas or cultivated land. The Common Cobra is mainly active during the day but may be active at dusk instead when the weather is hot and humid. It is very aggressive and its poisonous bite can be lethal, so it should be handled with care. Its diet includes fish, frogs, toads, lizards, snakes, bird, bird eggs and rodents. Mating season is in May with 7 to 25 eggs laid per nest during the summer. The eggs hatch after around 1.5 to 2 months. The young are around 20cm in length and the mother exhibits egg-protecting behavior.

Morphology
This is a large snake species that grows up to 2 meters in length. There are faint grayish-white rings on the body. The Common Cobra is easily roused. When this happens, it raises the front of its body while flattening and expanding its neck region. The white bands on the back of the neck become particularly prominent during this time and look like a pair of spectacles. This is why it is known as the "Spectacle Snake" in Chinese.

National Museum of Natural Science (The Digital Museum of Nature & Culture)