GIANT COBRAS IN ZOO

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 76, Issue 302, 22 December 1933, Page 8

GIANT COBRAS IN ZOO

, MOST VENOMOUS SERPENTS. HOMERIC FIGHT IN CAGE. Of special interest are some recent arrivals at the London Zoo reptilehouse. The most outstanding newcomers arc a pair of giant specimens of the hamadryad, or king cobra, from Malaya, which have been presented by Mr. St. Alban Smith. The largest specimen measures nearly 13ft. in length, while the smaller measures 9ft. 9in. The king cobra is the largest of its tribe and holds the distinction of being the world’s most venomous serpent. It is, moreover, Unusually intelligent and courageous. Whereas other species of cobra prefer retreat to combat, the king cobra seldom hesitates to show fight. It will even give chase to the intruder, and on such occasions may travel at a speed of some 10 miles an hour. The reptile is a cannibal, feeding on other species of snake, but sometimes varying its diet with monitor lizards. An Bft.-long python was injudiciously included in the same packing-case as the new giant cobras, and on the journey a Homeric fight ensued between the larger cobra and the constrictor. The cobra apparently embedded its fangs into the python, which in retaliation exerted its constricting powers to the fullest extent. Although the former did not escape without some slight injuries, it emerged victorious from the contest, the poison which it injected taking effect before its adversary’s coils had achieved a sufficiently deadly stranglehold. The peculiar diet of the hamadryad once cost the Zoological Society some £25. When the first specimen arrived at the zoo many years ago a keeper, ignorant of the snake’s feeding habits, placed it for the first night after its arrival in a cage containing six ordinary cobras. The latter, received on deposit. from a dealer, had all disappeared within the giant by the morning, the “king” having evidently regarded them as welcome fare after a prolonged fast aboard ship.