It has a head as big as a man’s hand and can stand tall enough to look you straight in the eye.
Its venom can stun your nervous system and stop your breathing.The king cobra’s deadly fangs are almost half an inch (8-10 millimeters) long. Because they are fixed to the upper jaw, they have to be short. If they were longer, the king might bite the floor of its mouth and commit royal suicide. Angled back into the snake’s mouth, the fangs help push the prey on its path to the stomach.
A regal bite delivers venom from glands attached to the fangs. The flexing of a small muscle forces the venom through the hollow fangs into the victim. Within minutes, neurotoxins stun the prey’s nervous system, especially the impulses for breathing. Other toxins start digesting the paralyzed victim.
Drop for drop, a king cobra’s venom is actually less lethal than a common cobra’s. The king more than makes up for it by delivering more venom per bite—as much as .2 fluid ounces (7 milliliters) of liquid. That’s enough to kill an elephant, or 20 people.
Its venom can stun your nervous system and stop your breathing.The king cobra’s deadly fangs are almost half an inch (8-10 millimeters) long. Because they are fixed to the upper jaw, they have to be short. If they were longer, the king might bite the floor of its mouth and commit royal suicide. Angled back into the snake’s mouth, the fangs help push the prey on its path to the stomach.
A regal bite delivers venom from glands attached to the fangs. The flexing of a small muscle forces the venom through the hollow fangs into the victim. Within minutes, neurotoxins stun the prey’s nervous system, especially the impulses for breathing. Other toxins start digesting the paralyzed victim.
Drop for drop, a king cobra’s venom is actually less lethal than a common cobra’s. The king more than makes up for it by delivering more venom per bite—as much as .2 fluid ounces (7 milliliters) of liquid. That’s enough to kill an elephant, or 20 people.
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