Underrated Animals

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-Phyrrian

Number one: King Cobra

The **king cobra** (*Ophiophagus hannah*) is an elapid endemic to forests from India through Southeast Asia. It is threatened by habitat destruction and has been listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List since 2010. It is the world's longest venomous snake. Adult king cobras are 3.18 to 4 m (10.4 to 13.1 ft) long on average. The longest known individual measured 5.85 m (19.2 ft). It is the sole member of the genus *Ophiophagus*. It preys chiefly on other snakes and occasionally on some other vertebrates, such as lizards and rodents. It is a highly venomous and dangerous snake when agitated or provoked that has a fearsome reputation in its range, although it is typically shy and avoids confrontation with humans when possible. The king cobra is a prominent symbol in the mythology and folk traditions of India, Sri Lanka and Myanmar. It is the national reptile of India.

*Hamadryas hannah* was the scientific name used by Danish naturalist Theodore Edward Cantor in 1836 who described four king cobra specimens, three captured in the Sundarbans and one in the vicinity of Kolkata. *Naja bungarus* was proposed by Hermann Schlegel in 1837 who described a king cobra zoological specimen from Java. In 1838, Cantor proposed the name *Hamadryas ophiophagus* for the king cobra and explained that it has dental features intermediate between the genera *Naja* and *Bungarus*. *Naia vittata* proposed by Walter Elliot in 1840 was a king cobra caught offshore near Chennai that was floating in a basket. *Hamadryas elaps* proposed by Albert Günther in 1858 were king cobra specimens from the Philippines and Borneo. Günther considered both *N. bungarus* and *N. vittata* a variety of *H. elaps*. The genus *Ophiophagus* was proposed by Günther in 1864. The name is derived from its propensity to eat snakes.

*Naja ingens* proposed by Alexander Willem Michiel van Hasselt in 1882 was a king cobra captured near Tebing Tinggi in northern Sumatra.

*Ophiophagus hannah* was accepted as the valid name for the king cobra by Charles Mitchill Bogert in 1945 who argued that it differs significantly from *Naja* species. A genetic analysis using cytochrome b, and a multigene analysis showed that the king cobra was an early offshoot of a genetic lineage giving rise to the mambas, rather than the *Naja* cobras.

A phylogenetic analysis of mitochondrial DNA showed that specimens from Surattani and Nakhon Si Thammarat Provinces in southern Thailand form a deeply divergent clade from those from northern Thailand, which grouped with specimens from Myanmar and Guangdong in southern China.

The king cobra's skin is olive green with black and white bands on the trunk that converge to the head. The head is covered by 15 drab coloured and black edged shields. The muzzle is rounded, and the tongue black. It has two fangs and 3–5 maxillar teeth in the upper jaw, and two rows of teeth in the lower jaw. The nostrils are between two shields. The large eyes have a golden iris and round pupils. Its hood is oval shaped and covered with olive green smooth scales and two black spots between the two lowest scales. Its cylindrical tail is yellowish green above and marked with black. It has a pair of large occipital scales on top of the head, 17 to 19 rows of smooth oblique scales on the neck, and 15 rows on the body. Juveniles are black with chevron shaped white, yellow or buff bars that point towards the head. Adult king cobras are 3.18 to 4 m (10.4 to 13.1 ft) long. The longest known individual measured 5.85 m (19.2 ft). Ventral scales are uniformly oval shaped. Dorsal scales are placed in an oblique arrangement.

The king cobra is sexually dimorphic, with males being larger and paler in particular during the breeding season. Males captured in Kerala measured up to 3.75 m (12.3 ft) and weighed up to 10 kg (22 lb). Females captured had a maximum length of 2.75 m (9 ft 0 in) and a weight of 5 kg (11 lb). The largest known king cobra was 5.59 m (18 ft 4 in) long and captured in Thailand. It differs from other cobra species by size and hood. It is larger, has a narrower and longer stripe on the neck.

The head of a mature snake can be quite massive and bulky in appearance. Like all snakes, it can expand its jaws to swallow large prey items. It has proteroglyph dentition, meaning it has two short, fixed fangs in the front of the mouth, which channel venom into the prey. These are behind the usual "nine-plate" arrangement typical of colubrids and elapids, and are unique to the king cobra.[*citation needed*] The king cobra typically weighs about 6 kg (13 lb). A captive one at the London Zoo grew to 5.71 m (18.7 ft) before being euthanised upon the outbreak of World War II. The heaviest wild specimen was caught at Royal Island Club in Singapore in 1951, which weighed 12 kg (26 lb) and measured 4.8 m (16 ft). An individual kept at Bronx Zoo weighed 12.7 kg (28 lb) and was 4.4 m (14 ft) long in 1972.[*citation needed*]