King cobra chinese by viperskin
The King Cobra is the biggest venomous snake. They can reach up to 4 metres (13 ft) in length and 12 kilos (28 lb) in size. They’re highly venomous and can actually be fatal to people within 30 minutes of the bite. This is at least partly because the venom contains neurotoxins, cardiotoxins and also other nasty stuff. That means that not only does it shut down the nervous system of the victim and cause all kinds of pain while doing so, it will also either damage or stop the heart.
King cobras are one of those creatures that are extraordinary in many ways. The first notable thing is their diet; they eat mostly other snakes, even other cobras.
The second mind-blowing thing is the divergent evolution of king cobras: there are several species of cobras it’s just thatmost cobras are a different genus from king cobras. In other words, king cobras belong to the Ophiophagus – literally “snake eater” – genus while other cobras belong to the Naja genus. But all cobras can still be identified by their distinctive hoods.
The next amazing thing is that aside from being fierce and effective killers, king cobra females are actually also nurturing mothers, building a nest for their eggs and protecting them until they start to hatch which is really rare with reptiles in general and snakes specifically.
The last amazing thing about king cobras is their hiss which is so low that’s it’s more of a growl. While most snakes hiss at around 3,000 to 13,000 Hz (mostly at around 7,500 Hz), the king cobra hisses below 2,500 Hz (mostly at around 600 Hz which is also roughly the frequency of human speech).
Ophiphagus hannah king cobra chinese by viperskin
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