Cobra habitat. The king cobra is a snake killer. Reproduction and lifespan of the Indian cobra

Indian cobra or spectacled snake

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The Indian cobra, or spectacled snake, got its name for a reason. She is bright and extravagant. The main color of her jumpsuit is yellow with blue sparkles and a brown scarf (stripes) at the throat. The back of the overalls is darker - brown, and in the area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe ribs there is a wonderful identification mark - a white application in the form of pince-nez.

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Among these snakes there are also those that have one eyepiece in the application, these are called monocles.

The Indian cobra grows up to 1.5 - 2 m.

You can meet this beauty in India (hence the name), Central Asia, South China, the islands of the Malay Archipelago and the Philippines. The snake does not have certain requirements for the place of residence, it feels great both in the dense jungle, and in rice fields, and in the neighborhood with a person: in parks and personal plots.

In July, the female lays from 9 to 19 eggs, from which babies hatch in late August and early September. The Indian cobra does not incubate eggs, as it does, but after laying it is always nearby, protecting future offspring from offenders.

Spectacled snake is a predator and meat eater. She prefers to feast on rodents, amphibians and birds. But its main food is small rodents, so the Indian cobra is respected by farmers, because thanks to its efforts, there are fewer crop pests.

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The poison of the Indian cobra is very toxic, one dried gram is enough to kill 140 medium-sized dogs. On humans, the effects of a bite appear after 10 minutes.

Although Indian cobras love solitude, they have extraordinary artistic abilities, for which they are attracted to participate in the performances of Indian snake charmers. Interestingly, only Indian and Egyptian cobras have learned to tame. The caster plays the pipe, luring the snake out of the basket, and makes it sway to the beat of the music.

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In fact, the snake follows the movements of the musician, preparing for an attack, but it seems that she is dancing. And the caster risks his life every second of his performance. In order to stay alive, he studies the character, habits of his pet in the smallest details and details, and as soon as he sees that she is ready for an attack, he immediately puts it back into the basket. Skilled spellcasters can distract the snake's attention so much that they succeed in an incredible trick - a kiss with a snake, less skillful - remove the cobra's teeth. But the latter is rarely practiced: firstly, the audience can ask the caster to show the cobra's teeth, and if they are not found, he is cast out in disgrace. Secondly, losing teeth, the cobra loses its poison and cannot digest its prey, therefore it is doomed to a slow and starvation death. Thirdly, changing a pet every 2-3 months is troublesome and costly for a caster.

Fearless cobra tamer

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King cobra or Hamadryad

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The king cobra is the largest venomous snake on the planet. It grows all its life and grows up to 4-5 meters.

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The largest king cobra was caught in Malaysia in 1937, from the tip of the nose to the tip of the tail, its length was 5.5 m. While it was transported to the London Zoo, it grew a little, and its length was already 5.7 m. During World War II During the war, zoo workers were forced to kill the giant so that in the event of a bombing of the zoo, the cobra could not escape and cause trouble. The average weight of an adult with an impressive size is only 5-6 kg, so the cobra does not look massive, like a python or anaconda.

When meeting, the king cobras measure their height, each tries to touch the top of the opponent's head, and the one that manages to do this first is the main one. The second one yields and tries to get out of the way as soon as possible.

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The color of the cobra's jumpsuit, depending on the place of residence, varies from olive to dark brown, with white, beige or yellow rings and a yellow belly. The king cobra is called not only because of its size, but also because of the six shields on the back of the head, similar to a crown.

You can meet the King Cobra in South and Southeast Asia. The queen of snakes chooses tropical forests and dense thickets of bushes as her habitat. In densely populated India, forests are being actively cut down. Therefore, the snake had to adapt to new conditions and learn to live next door to humans, although people are not very happy with such a dangerous neighbor.

Source: http://www.zoopicture.ru

During the mating period, males, having collided in the same territory, arrange ritual battle-dances, while they do not bite each other (even if they did bite, nothing bad would happen, because king cobras are immune to their own poison). Naturally, the winner remains near the female. At the same time, the winner is very jealous, and if the loser managed to fertilize the female, he can kill and eat her.

The male takes care of the female for a long time, but not because he is a gallant gentleman, but in order to make sure that she accepts him and will not send him to the forefathers, if something goes wrong.

The female lays 20-40 eggs in the nest. In order not to inadvertently eat the serpents, shortly before their appearance, he crawls away to hunt in order to eat enough.

The Latin name of the king cobra - Ophiophagus hannah - is translated as "eating snakes", but it does not apply to true cobras - representatives of the Naja genus, therefore this snake was isolated as an independent species.

The size and appearance of the king cobra really inspire respect and fear. Still, because the average length of her body is 3-4 meters, but there are individuals with a length of 5-5.5 meters!

It is not difficult to recognize this snake. A distinctive feature of the king cobra is a narrow hood at the back of the head and neck, decorated with 6 large dark shields in the form of a semicircle. The main color of the snake is brown or greenish brown. It alternates with dark rings encircling the entire body.

The queen of all snakes has an extensive range that stretches from India to the Philippines (South India, Pakistan, South China, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Greater Sunda Islands and the Philippines).

For no particular reason, the "queen" does not like to be seen. She prefers to stick to dark caves or holes, of which there are a great many in the jungle.

They are also excellent tree climbers and good swimmers, but still prefer to spend most of their time on the ground. During the capture of prey or the pursuit of the enemy, the snake can move quickly. Therefore, the chances of escaping from the snake by flight are not so great. You will learn about the reasons for such aggressiveness a little below. Recently, there has been a trend of relocation of king cobras closer to human habitation, and there is an explanation for this.

Firstly, such a neighborhood often occurs during the rainy season and, secondly, the extensive spread of agricultural production in Asian countries leads to deforestation, which is the natural habitat of these snakes. In addition to this, cobras are often seen in crop areas where many rodents live, and where there are rodents, there are also small snakes - the main food of the king cobra.

Her favorite dish is rat snakes. But at any other opportunity, she is not averse to hunting other species, including poisonous ones. In cases of their deficiency, the "queen" can switch to large lizards, but this does not happen so often.

A powerful venom that has a neurotoxic effect helps the snake to quickly cope with its prey. It causes paralysis of the respiratory muscles, which leads to respiratory arrest and, as a result, to death. The amount of poison injected into the victim when bitten is about 6-7 ml. Such a dose can be fatal even for an elephant, what can we say about a person.

Despite the highly toxic venom and aggressiveness, human deaths from king cobra bites are rare. This is due to the fact that the snake will not waste its "weapon" in vain. First of all, it is necessary for hunting, and in order to scare a person, K. cobra often inflicts “blank bites”. They occur without injection of venom or very little of it to be fatal. If a person received a full bite, then he has no more than half an hour to live. Only the timely administration of an antidote, antivenin, can save him.

Interestingly, the king cobras themselves have developed immunity to their poison, therefore, during the “fights” for the female during the mating season, not one of the gentlemen dies from the bites of an opponent.

January is the beginning of the mating season, when the male goes in search of a female. If there are several applicants, then ritual battles take place. The winner gets the main prize - a female. Then a short acquaintance takes place, during which the male is convinced that the female does not pose a danger to him, and the final stage of mating games begins - mating.

The king cobra is one of the few snakes that builds a nest for their eggs. It is a large pile of rotting foliage, located on a small hill (so that it does not flood heavily during tropical downpours). There, the female lays from 20 to 40 eggs, and then constantly maintains a certain temperature in it (from 25 to 29 ° C).

King cobra or hamadryad (lat. Ophiophagus hannah) (English King Cobra)

After laying eggs, the female becomes very aggressive. She guards them around the clock and is ready to throw herself at anyone who passes by her "treasury". Whether it's a small harmless animal or an elephant. As a result, aggressive behavior and attacks for no apparent reason are often attributed to her, although all her aggressiveness is most often associated with the close location of the nest. In addition, during this period, the toxicity of her poison increases, which leads to even more deaths from her bites.

The incubation period lasts about 3 months, after which small, but already highly poisonous cubs hatch into the world. Before that, the female goes in search of food, so as not to eat her babies from hunger. As a result, only 2-4 out of 20-40 kites reach adulthood.

In India, K. cobra is considered a sacred animal, and its killing is punishable not only by religion, but also by laws. Since 1972, a law has been in force prohibiting the killing of cobras unless absolutely necessary. Punishment - imprisonment for up to 3 years.

Images of K. cobra can often be seen in temples. Hindus believe that she understands mantras - sacred spells. According to their belief, this snake has purity and holiness and brings wealth to the house.

Once a year, a holiday dedicated to the king cobra - Nag-panchami - is celebrated. On this day, Hindus bring snakes from the forest and release them in temples or right on the streets. Daredevils put them on their hands, neck, wrap around their heads. And all these tricks with animals go unpunished. According to Indian beliefs, snakes do not bite anyone on this day. After the holiday is over, all the cobras are taken back to the forest.

King cobras live for about 30 years and are constantly growing throughout this period.

Cobra bite, treatment methods and serious consequences - the article will help you learn some informative facts about this poisonous snake.

Let's start acquaintance

Overall, there are about 270 species of snakes (which include the cobra and relatives such as the taipan, others). There are about 28 types of cobras.

Is the cobra aggressive?

Most cobras are shy, they run and hide when they meet people. The exception is . It will attack if you run into it.

Watch the video - cobra bite Austin Stevens

This is one of the supernatural cobra facts: it is the only snake in the world that can spit venom!

Can they see?

Snakes are not blind, they see very well even at night.

Jacobsen Organ: Gives Cobre super powers.

Cobras have a "Jacobsen Organ" (like most snakes) which gives them superpowers. They can sense the slightest changes in temperature, allowing them to track prey at night.

Can they hear?

They feel sound through contact with the ground much better than humans.

How many years do they live?

The cobra lives up to 20 years or more when in the wild.

How dangerous is poison?

It is not the strongest, but a cobra delivers so much venom in one bite that it can easily kill an elephant. , have a weaker poison.

How can snake charmers avoid death?

Many charmers remove fangs or venom sacs from their snakes because it is too dangerous. This practice is illegal and considered inhumane.

The snake charmer.

What are the functions of a cobra hood?

When a cobra grows big, its beautiful hood becomes a sight to behold, but how does that work? The hood is created by expanding the ribs behind the snake's head. It is used to make the Cobra appear bigger and scarier.

This amazing hood contains loose skin, which the snake inflates with air from its lungs, expanding the movable ribs. Look at the photo of the cobra's hood to get a clearer picture.

What do cobras eat

The cobra delights in eating birds, fish, frogs, toads, lizards, eggs and chicks, in addition to small mammals such as rabbits, rats, even other snakes.

Did you know that Cobra is at the top of the food chain? Their natural predators are only mongooses, a few large birds of prey such as the secretary bird, and humans of course.

Cobra is the traditional name for individual venomous snakes belonging to the asp family. Throughout the family, they are scattered in separate genera. Cobras are warm and moisture-loving, so they do not live in Russia. On the territory of the countries of the former USSR, only the Central Asian cobra is found. On the African continent, you can find the Egyptian cobra, black-necked or spitting cobra, collared cobra. However, the greatest diversity of cobras is found in South and Southeast Asia. The most famous of them are the Indian cobra and the king cobra.

A distinctive feature of all cobras is the hood, which appears when the snake's cervical ribs are pulled apart. This so-called threat posture is accompanied by hissing and raising the front of the body off the ground.

Like all other venomous snakes, cobras have special venomous teeth. Despite the fact that they are paired, often the poison enters the body of the victim only through one tooth, while the second serves as a spare. The poison-producing apparatus of the cobra is more primitive than that of the representatives of the viper family. Her short teeth are bent back and completely immobile. To bite, a cobra needs to open its mouth very wide. The grooves on the front of the cobra's poisonous teeth closed and formed a poison channel. Plus, a large number of small teeth are located on the upper jaw of the snake.

How to avoid a cobra bite

The snake prefers to scare a person to the last, make false attacks, hit him with his head, and only if all attempts are fruitless does he bite. Therefore, protecting yourself from a cobra bite is quite simple.

First, never touch a cobra, don't bother it.

Secondly, for walks in places where it is distributed, wear high shoes made of thick material.

Thirdly, step on your full foot, do not hide your presence. Check the path in front of you with a thick long stick, run it along the surface of the earth. The snake, sensing your approach, will hide.

Fourth, carefully look around to find the snake nest in time.

Fifth, do not put your hands in incomprehensible cracks or under snags.

Sixth, for parking, choose places unsuitable for cobras (without rodent burrows, stones, soil cracks, shrubs, reeds). Also, make sure that there are not a lot of rodents, small birds, toads and frogs nearby, which she eats.

Seventh, stopping for a halt, stomp loudly on the ground, create powerful vibrations that will scare away snakes.

Eighth, close the tents tightly at night, take all things inside.

Ninth, be as careful as possible when traveling on summer nights. Cobras are very active during this time.

What are the consequences of a cobra bite

At the site of a cobra bite, a rather specific imprint appears. Poisonous teeth leave two large point wounds, and substitute teeth leave one or two points of a more modest size. In case of contact with bare skin, tiny imprints of auxiliary teeth in the form of an elongated oval can also be observed on it.

The cobra, compared to its relatives, bites the least painfully. A special toxin in the composition of its poison blocks the pain impulse. The pain is either minor or non-existent. All local features are very weakly expressed. There is no swelling or redness at the site of the bite. 10-15 minutes after the bite, the sensitivity of the skin may be disturbed.

Cobra venom has mainly neurotoxic effects. Therefore, in case of poisoning with its poison, predominantly disturbances in the central and peripheral nervous system are observed. Symptoms:

• short period of excitement,
• subsequent feeling of lethargy, apathy, drowsiness,
• shortness of breath, shortness of breath,
• nausea, vomiting,
• dizziness,
• clouding of consciousness or short-term fainting,
• paresis and paralysis of the muscles of the arms, legs, larynx, tongue, lips,
• problematic swallowing,
• speech disorders,
• eyelid drooping,
• convulsions,
• profuse salivation,
• sweating,
• involuntary urination, fecal excretion,
• drop in blood pressure,
• heart failure.

Paralysis gradually spreads to the muscles of the trunk and respiratory system. In severe cases, a paralyzed respiratory center or acute heart failure is fatal within the first few hours after a bite. When the poison enters directly into the blood vessel, complete paralysis occurs within 10-15 minutes after the bite. Most deaths are recorded on the first day.

The nature of the action of the poison may vary depending on the specific type of cobra. Bites, for example, of Asian representatives are accompanied by a more pronounced local reaction, up to the appearance of necrosis, compared with the bites of African species. Plus, in these cases, symptoms from the cardiovascular system predominate.

What not to do when bitten by a cobra

Do not apply grass to the bite site, cover it with ash, earth and other similar substances. This is fraught with infection of the wound.

You can not chip the bitten place with any drugs. This can only exacerbate the problem.

Do not cut the bite or bleed. All actions of such a plan only further injure the victim.

It is also not allowed to consume alcoholic beverages in any quantities. Alcohol dilates blood vessels, thereby accelerating the spread and absorption of the poison.

What measures can be taken in case of a cobra bite

The most effective way to treat a victim of a cobra bite is to administer a special serum. However, this drug can be administered only after a preliminary skin or eye test, which is quite problematic in the field, and therefore the serum is used mainly in medical institutions. Therefore, it is necessary to deliver the bitten person as soon as possible to the nearest medical facility that has serum. While waiting for an ambulance or on the way to the hospital, the victim can and should be given first aid.

1. Place the victim in the shade. Make sure that his head is below the level of his body.

2. Carefully inspect the clothing, as the main part of the poison could remain on it. Remove the poison.

4. During the first 5 minutes after the bite, suck out the contents of the wound with a syringe, a rubber pear, a blood-suction jar. In the absence of the necessary devices, you can try to suck out the poison by mouth, but only if there are no fresh mucosal lesions in its cavity, and the teeth are completely healthy. During the first 5 minutes, about 30-40% of the poison can be eliminated, by the 15th minute this figure will decrease to 10%. The sucked liquid should be spit out periodically. At the end of the procedure, rinse your mouth thoroughly with potassium permanganate water.

5. Then wash the wound with soapy water, treat with antiseptics.

6. Apply a sterile, non-compressive dressing.

7. Apply a tourniquet above the lesion, but only for the first 30 minutes. It is worth noting that the application of a tourniquet is allowed only with the bite of a cobra and sea snakes. In all other cases, it is categorically contraindicated. The fact is that cobra venom does not lead to massive necrosis at the injection site.

8. To slow down the absorption and spread of the poison, cool the bite site by applying, for example, a lotion with cold water.

9. Immobilize the bitten limb with a splint and similar devices.

10. To reduce the concentration of poison in the body, provide the victim with a plentiful warm drink. Warm liquid is absorbed faster in the stomach. Suitable tea, coffee, salted and mineral water. At the same time, stimulate the victim to urinate. Use diuretic drugs like furosemide, veroshpiron, lingonberry leaf decoction or the same coffee, which also contains caffeine and has a diuretic effect.

11. If there are antihistamines in the medicine cabinet, give the victim a couple of tablets.

• At one time, the cobra releases approximately 200 mg of poison into the victim's body.
• In the absence of appropriate medical care, a cobra bite in about a third of cases is fatal.
• The venom of a king cobra can kill even an Indian elephant 3-4 hours after the bite, which will fall on the end of his trunk or fingers.

The king cobra (its second name is the hamadryad) is rightfully considered the most poisonous and longest snake in the world. And this is not surprising, because its size and appearance really inspire respect and a sense of fear.

This is because the record body length of the largest king cobra is 560 centimeters, and the average length ranges between 3 and 4 meters.

On the head, in addition to the usual occipital shields, there are 6 additional dark shields in the form of a semicircle, which are a kind of cobra decoration and form a thin hood.

What does a cobra look like and where does it live?

The main color of the king cobra is brown or yellowish green, however, the color is quite variable - this is due to the wide habitat of the cobra. The darker the area in which the cobra lives, the darker its skin will be, respectively.

In addition, the usual coloring alternates with dark rings located around the perimeter of the snake's body. These rings have a fuzzy outline near the neck and are pronounced in the tail.

The process of molting in adults occurs 4-6 times a year, and in young ones - about once a month. Along with the appearance of new skin, the cobra also acquires renewed eyes and teeth.

In the first days after the molt, the vision of the “queen” will deteriorate significantly, however, after a quick recovery, she will already be able to recognize objects at a distance of up to 90-100 meters.

When the molt ends, the hamadryad becomes vulnerable and begins to look for a warm place to hide, often this place is a human dwelling.

An interesting fact is that this unusual snake can live an average of 30 years, and throughout its existence it continues to grow.

The area of ​​​​residence of the king cobra is impressive in its breadth and occupies most of Southeast Asia, the distribution area captures the area from India to the Philippines.

Also, the king cobra can be observed in certain areas of Pakistan, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia. Most often, this species is found in forest areas, but cases of distribution are also known on lands developed by man.

The king cobra can successfully live not only on land, it is an excellent swimmer and excellent tree mover. Although it lives mainly on the ground, in norms or caves.

What does the king cobra eat?

The diet of the king cobra is not as varied as compared to other snakes.

The reason for this is that this type of cobra feeds mainly on other snakes. Sometimes lizards may be included in their diet, but in spite of everything, preference is given to their own kind, swallowing them whole.

It is thanks to this monotonous diet that the king cobra was given the official name, which in the original sounds like Ophiophagus hannah, and literally means “snake eater”.

For a certain period of time, a cobra can do without food. This applies to those three months when the female guards her eggs.

Reproduction of the king cobra

The queen cobra is distinguished by the constant structure of the nests in which it then lays its eggs. The mating season for king cobras begins in January. Like most animals, in the event of the appearance of competitors, male cobras arrange fights for the female.

Before mating, the male needs a certain time to look after the female and thereby make sure that she is completely safe, because there are cases when an aggressive female can attack her chosen one and even kill him.

Then mating takes place, which takes about an hour for the cobras. After a month, the female will be able to lay eggs.

During this time, the cobra equips a nest, which consists of a small pile of leaves. The snake rakes the leaves with the help of its chest part of the body.

Usually, the king cobra lays 20 eggs, however, in some cases, their number can reach 40. From above, the eggs are again covered with leaves, on which the female lies last. Then she guards the eggs around the clock, sometimes the male joins this process.

During this period, the female is especially aggressive and susceptible to the appearance of foreign animals in the area near the nest. Therefore, protecting its offspring, the cobra will no longer make "idle" bites. She will be ready to attack anyone passing by, regardless of whether it is an animal or a person.

After 100 days, the eggs hatch into very small, but already quite poisonous and dangerous kites. Before the birth of the babies, the female leaves the nest for a certain time and looks for food. This is necessary so that the hungry cobra does not eat its newborn cubs.

It is known that out of 20-40 kites only 2-4 will be able to reach adulthood.

Cobra hunting and features of its poison

It is known that the poison of the king cobra, entering the body, has a strong neurotoxic effect on it, in particular, this applies to the respiratory system of the victim.

Due to the injection of this poison into the body, paralysis of the muscles of the respiratory system occurs, which causes respiratory arrest, and it, accordingly, leads to death. Very disastrous consequences from a small bite, right?

When a cobra bites, about 6 ml of snake venom enters the human or animal body, and this dose can be considered fatal.

A person who has received such a dose of poison lives no more than 15 minutes. But it is worth noting that there is an antidote - antivenin, which can save a person, however, to save him, it is necessary to introduce an antidote into the body immediately after the bite, and this possibility is not always present in people.

An interesting fact is that, despite the aggressiveness and extreme poisonousness of the king cobra, there have been few cases of human death after its bite.

Obviously, this is due to the fact that the cobra hunts other snakes, including poisonous ones, using its poison as a real weapon, so the waste of poison is not at all beneficial for this cobra and that is why, unlike some other types of cobras, they does not spit poison.

To frighten and drive away a person, the snake uses the so-called "idle" bites, in which the poison is not released and hisses at him. To do this, the cobra contracts some muscles and blocks the channels of the poisonous glands.

Cobras themselves cannot die from exposure to their own poison, the reason for this may be the formed immunity.

Living in captivity

Despite the fact that king cobras are quite common in nature and are not included in the Red Book, this snake species is very rare in zoos (mainly due to their high aggressiveness).

In addition, it is quite difficult to transfer a cobra to eating rats, which it does not perceive as a food product at all, so if you suddenly want to get yourself a homemade cobra, then it is better to abandon such an idea as soon as possible ..)

Unsuccessful mongoose hunt for cobra

Mongooses, as you probably know, often prey on poisonous snakes. That's just not always such a hunt ends happily for these small furry animals. In this video you can see a short fight between a mongoose and a cobra: