1.
Indian Cobra

2.
CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION
CLASSIFICATION
MORPHOLOGY
DISTRIBUTION AND HABITAT
FEEDING AND BEHAVIOUR
COBRA VENOM
REPRODUCTION
ECONOMIC IMPORTANCE
CONSERVATION STATUS AND EFFORTS

3.
INTRODUCTION
• The Indian cobra is highly venomous snake with
medium size and heavy body.
• It is also known as the spectacled cobra, Asian
cobra. It is quick and agile.
• Indian cobra is diurnal and mostly active in
evening and early morning.
• The Indian cobra is a slender snake, usually
weighing 6 to 10 kilograms, with the heaviest
cobra weighing 12.6 kilos.
• Their adults have length in meters ranging
from 3 to 5 feet

4.
CLASSIFICATION
• The scientific name of Indian cobra is Naja
naja.
• Naja naja was first described by Swedish
physician, zoologist, and botanist Carl Linnaeus
in 1758.
• Naja is a sanskrit word naga meaning "cobra".
In Pakistan, Indian cobra is called by names
like sheesh nag and kala nag.

5.
CLASSI…
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Elapidae
Genus: Naja
Species: Naja naja

6.
MORPHOLOGY
• It is a smooth-scaled snake with black eyes, a
wide neck and head.
• Cobras poisonous snake with hollow fangs (long
pointed tooth) fixed at the front of the mouth.
They inject venom through their fangs.

7.
MORPH….
• The Indian Cobra's most known characteristic
features are the wide black band on the
underside of the neck
• Cobras have round pupils and smooth scales,
have varying colours and patterns.
• The hood is another important feature.
Hooding occurs when the snake spreads out its
neck ribs forming a flattened structure near
the head.

8.
DISTRIBUTION AND
HABBTAT
• The Indian cobra is native to the Indian
subcontinent and can be found throughout
India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and
southern Nepal.
• It is found in eastern Pakistan and thar and
cholistan desert

9.
DISTRI…
• It can be found in dense or open forests,
plains, agricultural lands (rice paddy fields,
wheat crops), rocky terrain, wetlands, and it
can even be found in heavily populated urban
areas.
• The cobra usually hides in holes in
embarkments, termite mound, tree hollows
rock piles, caves, cracks and small mammal
dens. The Indian cobra is often found in the
vicinity of water.

10.
FEEDING AND
BEHAVIOUR
• Indian cobra feeds on rodents, lizards, and
frogs. It feeds on small mammals as well.
• It bites then waits while its venom damages
the nervous system of the prey, paralyzing and
often killing it and then swallows its whole
prey.
• When threatened, the Indian Cobra will assume
its characteristic posture.
• It will raise the front one-third of its body and
elongate its long, flexible neck ribs and loose
skin to form its distinctive hood

11.
COBRA VENOM
• The Indian cobra is one of the big four snakes
of South Asia which are responsible for the
majority of human deaths by snakebite in Asia.
• The venom is highly neurotoxic and contain
powerful post-synaptic neurotoxins,
cardiotoxins and other components.
• The venom paralysed the muscles and in severe
bites it can lead to respiratory failure or
cardiac arrest and ultimately to death. The
venom acts faster and symptoms appear in 15
minutes.
• Anti-venom is available. Polyvalent anti-venom
serum is used to treat it.

12.
REPRODUCTION
• Indian cobras are oviparous and lay their eggs
between the months of April and July.
• The eggs are usually 12 to 20 and laid in a
hollow tree, or in the earth.
• The female will guard them throughout the
incubation period. The young snakes will then
hatch after approximately 50 days.
• The life span of Indian cobra is 23.9 years on
average but maximum lifespan is 32.3 years.

13.
ECONOMIC IMPORTANCE
The Indian cobras are important as they keep
balance in nature.
Positive importance: The Indian Cobra eats rats
and mice that carry disease. Also, cobra venom
is a potential source of medicines, including
anti-cancer drugs and pain-killers.
Negative importance: This species is highly
venomous and its bite can be lethal and many
people die each year from N.naja bites.

14.
CONSERVATION STATUS
Status: The Indian Cobra was not an
endangered species, it has recently been hunted
for its distinctive hood markings in the
production of handbags. Its status is now in
endangered species listed by CITES.

15.
CONSER…
Threats: Deforestation, reclamation and
overgrazing are the main threats to the cobras in
Pakistan.
Every year thousands of cobras are killed in
Pakistan for their skins. Snake charmers capture
cobras to stage fights with mongoose in rural
and urban areas, also used in medicines.
Efforts: CITES has included the Indian cobra on
its roster of animals that need a permit for
export, and also sets quotas on how many of the
cobras can be exported yearly

16.
REFRENCES
www.nationalgeographic.com
www.wildlifeofpakistan.pk
www.animaldiversity.org