King Cobra
Ophiophagus hannah
26.8312, 86.2482
Field Notes
Description:
The king cobra (Ophiophagus hannah) is an elapid found predominantly in forests from India through Southeast Asia. This species is the world's longest venomous snake, with a length up to 18.5 to 18.8 ft (5.6 to 5.7 m). Despite the word "cobra" in its common name, this snake is not a member of the Naja genus ("true cobras"), which contains most cobra species, but the sole member of its own genus. It preys chiefly on other snakes and occasionally on some other vertebrates, such as lizards and rodents. The king cobra is a dangerous snake that has a fearsome reputation in its range, although it typically avoids confrontation with humans when possible.
The king cobra is a prominent symbol in the mythology and folk traditions of Pakistan, India and parts of Southeast Asia.
Habitat:
The king cobra is distributed across the Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia, and the southern areas of East Asia (where it is not common), in Bangladesh, Bhutan, Burma, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Nepal, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and southern China. 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 and ongoing collection for the international pet trade. It is listed as an Appendix II animal within CITES.
Notes:
This beautiful creature of the nature, King Cobra (Ophiophagus hannah) was rescued by Mithila Wildlife Trust, Nepal (MWT Nepal) from a residential house of Mirchaiya municipality, Siraha district, Central Development region, Nepal on November 16, 2016 at 7:45PM.
The snake was residing inside the ladder house under storage of old wooden planks for over a week. The residents called to the wildlife rescue team of Mithila Wildlife Trust for the rescue. The snake was rescued successfully by the chairman, Mr. Dev Narayan Mandal and was transported to Dhanushadham Protected Forest of adjoining district.
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