You're walking through the rain forests and plains of India, southern China, or Southeast Asia. The soggy grounds and the burning sun makes it very hard for you to walk. Very tired you sit beneath a tree in the shade to rest. A split second later you are sitting face-to-face with a snake standing up looking at you straight in the eye. You might ask what type of snake this might be...THE KING COBRA.
Habitat
The king cobra is distributed across the plains of India, southern China, and Southeast Asia. To be more specific with their location, the live in rainforests and the outer area of highland forests that are closer to the lakes and streams. King cobras enjoys wet, humid, and rainy conditions. They also enjoy hanging out by rivers and other swampy areas. The king cobra lives by trees because it also enjoys being in the shade. If you look at the picture on the left, it gives you a good idea of what type of environment the king cobra would live in. The picture has many trees and has a river. This is definitely the type of environment the king cobra would live in.
The king cobra is distributed across the plains of India, southern China, and Southeast Asia. To be more specific with their location, the live in rainforests and the outer area of highland forests that are closer to the lakes and streams. King cobras enjoys wet, humid, and rainy conditions. They also enjoy hanging out by rivers and other swampy areas. The king cobra lives by trees because it also enjoys being in the shade. If you look at the picture on the left, it gives you a good idea of what type of environment the king cobra would live in. The picture has many trees and has a river. This is definitely the type of environment the king cobra would live in.
Methods of finding prey
The king cobra uses 3 methods of finding prey. Just like other snakes, the king cobra receives chemical info through their forked tongue. Their forked tongue picks up scent particles and transfers the to a special sensor located at the roof of their mouth. If the king cobra smells an animal, it will flick it's tongue to find it's prey's location. Eye sight it also used by the king cobra to find food. They are able to see 330 ft. away. It has been heard that king cobras are deaf. Instead, they are actually deaf to ambient noises, sensing ground vibrations instead. Last way that king cobras find prey is by their sensitivity giving them the ability to use earth-borne vibration to track it's prey.
The king cobra uses 3 methods of finding prey. Just like other snakes, the king cobra receives chemical info through their forked tongue. Their forked tongue picks up scent particles and transfers the to a special sensor located at the roof of their mouth. If the king cobra smells an animal, it will flick it's tongue to find it's prey's location. Eye sight it also used by the king cobra to find food. They are able to see 330 ft. away. It has been heard that king cobras are deaf. Instead, they are actually deaf to ambient noises, sensing ground vibrations instead. Last way that king cobras find prey is by their sensitivity giving them the ability to use earth-borne vibration to track it's prey.
Protection against predators
As previously mentioned this snake is the most poisonous of them all through the amount of venom it can inject in someone but it isn't the strongest. Due to this fact, the king cobra will avoid confronting other animals. If you corner the king cobra, it will go ahead and attack with it's venom that is sufficient to cause death to an animal as large as an elephant because it has no other choice but to attack so it can survive. The king cobra uses venom to protect itself however, that isn't all the king cobra is capable of doing. Corbras are distincly named cobras because of one physical feature also used to protect themselves. This physical feautre is called the hood. As the king cobra raises its body, they open their hood which makes them look more intimidating because od the way their hood looks with a design looking like an eye. This design that looks like an eye is called occipitals. We will touch upon that when we talk about the king cobra's body. While doing this, the king cobra hisses. It is somewhat of a reflex for the king cobra to make sounds for protection that sounds almost like a growling dog.
As previously mentioned this snake is the most poisonous of them all through the amount of venom it can inject in someone but it isn't the strongest. Due to this fact, the king cobra will avoid confronting other animals. If you corner the king cobra, it will go ahead and attack with it's venom that is sufficient to cause death to an animal as large as an elephant because it has no other choice but to attack so it can survive. The king cobra uses venom to protect itself however, that isn't all the king cobra is capable of doing. Corbras are distincly named cobras because of one physical feature also used to protect themselves. This physical feautre is called the hood. As the king cobra raises its body, they open their hood which makes them look more intimidating because od the way their hood looks with a design looking like an eye. This design that looks like an eye is called occipitals. We will touch upon that when we talk about the king cobra's body. While doing this, the king cobra hisses. It is somewhat of a reflex for the king cobra to make sounds for protection that sounds almost like a growling dog.
Predators and prey
King cobras are very intelligent with their method of finding their prey. In that case, you might ask what is their prey. King cobras eat animals that are smaller in size when compared to their average length of 13 ft and average weight of 20 pounds. The types of animals they eat is the Rat snakes, Mangrove snakes, sizable pythons, rats, lizards, rodents, and a bunch more that would be to long of a list to show. Since the king cobra can be very poisonous to other animals it has lots of prey but now the question you might think about is, does the king cobra have predators. The answer to that is yes but the king cobra only has 3 of them. The first predator is the mongoose, the second predator is man and the third is the salt water crocodile.
King cobras are very intelligent with their method of finding their prey. In that case, you might ask what is their prey. King cobras eat animals that are smaller in size when compared to their average length of 13 ft and average weight of 20 pounds. The types of animals they eat is the Rat snakes, Mangrove snakes, sizable pythons, rats, lizards, rodents, and a bunch more that would be to long of a list to show. Since the king cobra can be very poisonous to other animals it has lots of prey but now the question you might think about is, does the king cobra have predators. The answer to that is yes but the king cobra only has 3 of them. The first predator is the mongoose, the second predator is man and the third is the salt water crocodile.
The king cobra's body
The king cobra has the skeleton type named the endoskeleton. For people who don't know what an endoskeleton is, it's an internal skeleton the consists of bony or cartilaginous skeleton. This type of skeleton belongs to animals that are vertebrates. The exact opposite type of skeleton is the exoskeleton. For people who also don't know what an exoskeleton is, it's an external hard shells. This type of skeleton belongs to animals like turtles because obviously of their hard external shell on their back and also to shrimp because of their tail. Let's look at the king cobra's external shape. King cobras are generally larger than other cobras. The hood of the king cobra is narrower and longer. An awesome quality of the king cobra is a pair of large scales known as occipitals on the back top area of their head which helps them identify other animals.
The king cobra has the skeleton type named the endoskeleton. For people who don't know what an endoskeleton is, it's an internal skeleton the consists of bony or cartilaginous skeleton. This type of skeleton belongs to animals that are vertebrates. The exact opposite type of skeleton is the exoskeleton. For people who also don't know what an exoskeleton is, it's an external hard shells. This type of skeleton belongs to animals like turtles because obviously of their hard external shell on their back and also to shrimp because of their tail. Let's look at the king cobra's external shape. King cobras are generally larger than other cobras. The hood of the king cobra is narrower and longer. An awesome quality of the king cobra is a pair of large scales known as occipitals on the back top area of their head which helps them identify other animals.
Why the king cobra
You're probably wondering why the king cobra was given the name the "king" cobra. The king cobra was given this name because the amount of venom is can give in one bite it the largest amount in quantity making it's level of hierarchy the highest when compared to all other cobras.
You're probably wondering why the king cobra was given the name the "king" cobra. The king cobra was given this name because the amount of venom is can give in one bite it the largest amount in quantity making it's level of hierarchy the highest when compared to all other cobras.
Scientific classification
The scientific classification or scientific name is Ophiophagus hannah. Ophiopahgus is a Latin word which means "snake eater". This part of the name makes sense because the king cobra does eat snakes like mentioned before. Hannah is believed to have it's origin from Greek mythology where it means wood or tree nymphs. This part of the name also makes sense because the king cobra lives in rainforests and highland forests which was also previously mentioned. A complete break down of Ophiophagus hannah would be snake eating tree inhabitant.
The scientific classification or scientific name is Ophiophagus hannah. Ophiopahgus is a Latin word which means "snake eater". This part of the name makes sense because the king cobra does eat snakes like mentioned before. Hannah is believed to have it's origin from Greek mythology where it means wood or tree nymphs. This part of the name also makes sense because the king cobra lives in rainforests and highland forests which was also previously mentioned. A complete break down of Ophiophagus hannah would be snake eating tree inhabitant.
Uses of environment to catch and protect
The king cobra can swim very well which is probably the reason why they prefer to live by rivers and other swampy areas. Their ability to swim also helps them catch their prey. What the would do is hide in the water, then when some prey comes close enough, the king cobra will quickly snatch them. The king cobra is also a good climber. Climbing trees gives them the opportunity to escape from predators and get a glorious view of prey because they can see up to 330 ft away.
The king cobra can swim very well which is probably the reason why they prefer to live by rivers and other swampy areas. Their ability to swim also helps them catch their prey. What the would do is hide in the water, then when some prey comes close enough, the king cobra will quickly snatch them. The king cobra is also a good climber. Climbing trees gives them the opportunity to escape from predators and get a glorious view of prey because they can see up to 330 ft away.
Venom
The venom of the king cobra primarily consists of neurotoxins which are toxins that act upon the nervous system. Just like all venomous creatures, the other components inside the venom are proteins and polypeptides. The king cobra is capable of delivering a bite that allows the one who is getting bitten to receive a large amount of venom with a dose of anywhere from 200 mg to 500 mg. I don't know about you but I wouldn't wanna be bitten by the king cobra. Large amounts of anti-venom may be needed to reverse the advancement of symptoms developed if bitten by a king cobra. The symptoms consist of blurred vision, vertigo or dizziness, drowsiness, and paralysis. Worse reactions could allow yourself to continue into cardiovascular collapse and you may fall into a coma. Death soon follows after because of respiratory failure. After being bitten, you could die as soon as 10 minutes depending on how bad the bite is.
The venom of the king cobra primarily consists of neurotoxins which are toxins that act upon the nervous system. Just like all venomous creatures, the other components inside the venom are proteins and polypeptides. The king cobra is capable of delivering a bite that allows the one who is getting bitten to receive a large amount of venom with a dose of anywhere from 200 mg to 500 mg. I don't know about you but I wouldn't wanna be bitten by the king cobra. Large amounts of anti-venom may be needed to reverse the advancement of symptoms developed if bitten by a king cobra. The symptoms consist of blurred vision, vertigo or dizziness, drowsiness, and paralysis. Worse reactions could allow yourself to continue into cardiovascular collapse and you may fall into a coma. Death soon follows after because of respiratory failure. After being bitten, you could die as soon as 10 minutes depending on how bad the bite is.
Threat to species
This species is unfortunately on the endangered list. The reason for this tragedy is due to the destruction of their habitat. People are choosing to cut down trees and make a profit on it but also not being aware of the wildlife in the rainforests. This is not the only way king cobras are being killed. The king cobras venom can be turned into an anti-venom medicine that can save someones life after being bitten by a king cobra or a snake. To do this the king cobra must be killed in order to extract the poisonous venom and turn it into anti-venom. The king cobra's meat and skin are also being traded and bought. People also kill king cobras because they think that they are to poisonous and dangerous. People kill king cobras in the impression that there won't be that many deaths to people. People don't understand that there aren't many confirmed snake bites to humans because king cobras rarely attack humans. And if you read the previous information, it stated that king cobras would avoid confronting because they aren't as strong as some people and other snakes.
This species is unfortunately on the endangered list. The reason for this tragedy is due to the destruction of their habitat. People are choosing to cut down trees and make a profit on it but also not being aware of the wildlife in the rainforests. This is not the only way king cobras are being killed. The king cobras venom can be turned into an anti-venom medicine that can save someones life after being bitten by a king cobra or a snake. To do this the king cobra must be killed in order to extract the poisonous venom and turn it into anti-venom. The king cobra's meat and skin are also being traded and bought. People also kill king cobras because they think that they are to poisonous and dangerous. People kill king cobras in the impression that there won't be that many deaths to people. People don't understand that there aren't many confirmed snake bites to humans because king cobras rarely attack humans. And if you read the previous information, it stated that king cobras would avoid confronting because they aren't as strong as some people and other snakes.
Reproduction
The king cobra is unusual when compared to other snakes because females are very dedicated to parenting. The female king cobra makes nests for her eggs. She scrapes up leaves and other debris into a mound to deposit her eggs. These eggs remain in the nest until they hatch which will be about 4 months. The limit of the amount of eggs that a female would produce and lay would be 40. Those are a lot of baby king cobras. As previously said, females are greatly dedicated to parenting, so they will guard their eggs ferociously. Females are actually so dedicated that during the time of guarding her eggs she doesn't eat anything! During this time, she might eat her young, giving her the option to abandon them before they hatch. This usually happens. At this point your probably wondering how do king cobras mate. The female and male mate by twisting themselves together which sticks themselves together. The king cobra only mates once a year. The time that the king cobra would mate would be in January. The female will prepare her nest in April. Soon later her eggs will hatch.
The king cobra is unusual when compared to other snakes because females are very dedicated to parenting. The female king cobra makes nests for her eggs. She scrapes up leaves and other debris into a mound to deposit her eggs. These eggs remain in the nest until they hatch which will be about 4 months. The limit of the amount of eggs that a female would produce and lay would be 40. Those are a lot of baby king cobras. As previously said, females are greatly dedicated to parenting, so they will guard their eggs ferociously. Females are actually so dedicated that during the time of guarding her eggs she doesn't eat anything! During this time, she might eat her young, giving her the option to abandon them before they hatch. This usually happens. At this point your probably wondering how do king cobras mate. The female and male mate by twisting themselves together which sticks themselves together. The king cobra only mates once a year. The time that the king cobra would mate would be in January. The female will prepare her nest in April. Soon later her eggs will hatch.