They kill their prey by injecting venom through their fangs. The venom is a neurotoxin that stops the victim’s breathing and heartbeat. A cobra only attacks a human if it feels threatened. These mighty snakes live in Africa and Asia, preferring savannas, open woodlands, plains, and rocky hillsides.

They can go for days or even months without eating, depending on how large their last meal was. The snake’s slow metabolism makes this possible. A mouse, rat, ground squirrel, or rabbit are its main prey items, but cobras may also eat amphibians, birds, lizards, other snakes, and eggs.

Also, cobras use their forked tongue to smell prey. The cobra, like other venomous snakes, is lightning fast when it strikes. But it has somewhat smaller fangs, so it may strike and chew rather than strike and release, or it may strike several times until the venom has done its job.

A cobra female produces a clutch of eggs each year and usually stays nearby to guard her eggs until they hatch. A baby cobra, like all snakes, is called a hatchling. It is able to take care of itself from the start and can spread its hood and strike on the same day it hatches.