Black Necked Spitting Cobra

The Black-Necked Spitting Cobra (Naja nigricollis) is a medium-sized African spitting cobra. It is an elapid – a snake with fangs.

The Black-Necked Spitting Cobra is mainly black, but its colour varies. Some are pale grey with a yellow or reddish ventral side with a broad, black neck band, often with an orange bar on the neck. Others can be yellowish-brown without the bandings around the neck and the reddish colour on the belly, whereas others are deep reddish-brown or olive brown.

They have 21-23 dorsal scales at the mid-body, 182-196 ventral scales, and 54-66 subcaudal scales.

The Black-Necked Spitting Cobra can grow to a length of 1-2 metres (3.3 and 6.6 feet).

They prey on small rodents, such as small rats and mice, but also birds, lizards, eggs and other snakes.

Like other spitting cobras, it can eject venom from its fangs. The venom can cause permanent blindness if it enters a person’s eyes.

The Black-Necked Spitting Cobra is common and widespread in Africa. It likes savanna and semidesert regions, as well as locations near rivers. Like other cobra species, the Black-Necked Spitting Cobra may live in abandoned termite mounds, rodent holes or tree trunks. They are excellent tree climbers.

They can be nocturnal (active at night) or diurnal (active during the day).

Like other cobra species, the Black-Necked Spitting Cobra is oviparous, which means that it lays eggs. Females lay 10-15 eggs, which take about 60-70 days to hatch. At birth, the young snakelets are about 20-25 centimeters (7.9 to 9.8 inches) in length and are completely independent.

MARTINA NICOLLS is an international aid and development consultant, and the author of:- Similar But Different in the Animal Kingdom (2017), The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan Curse (2009).

Comments

The acacia thorn trees of Kenya

There are nearly 800 species of acacia trees in the world, and most don’t have thorns. The famous "whistling thorn tree" and the Umbrella Thorn tree of Kenya are species of acacia that do have thorns, or spines. Giraffes and other herbivores normally eat thorny acacia foliage, but leave the whistling thorn alone. Usually spines are no deterrent to giraffes. Their long tongues are adapted to strip the leaves from the branches despite the thorns. The thorny acacia like dry and hot conditions. The thorns typically occur in pairs and are 5-8 centimetres (2-3 inches) long. Spines can be straight or curved depending on the species. MARTINA NICOLLS is an international aid and development consultant, and the author of:- Similar But Different in the Animal Kingdom (2017), The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Suda...

Hop on hop off bus tourism comes to Tbilisi, Georgia

City Sightseeing buses have arrived in Tbilisi. The iconic red double-decker buses, a feature of many cities around the world since the company was established in Seville, Spain in 1999, is now in six continents and almost 100 cities. The company established its Tbilisi business in November 2013, with its operations commencing in February 2014. The 90-minute tour stops at 11 major locations in Tbilisi (with 2 to 5 minute waiting times at each location): the Old City (where it commences), Freedom Square, Rose Revolution Square, Marjanishvili Square, the Dry Bridge, Konka, Avlabari, Metekhi, Akhundov Museum, the Sulfur Baths, and European Square. Passengers can hop off at any stop and see the sights, hopping back onto the next bus at any time. Alternatively, passengers can remain on the bus for the whole tour and take photographs when the bus stops at each location. There are one day (24-hour) passes (for 35 lari – about $20) and 48-hour passes for 55 lari, with family d...

The Knight in the Panther Skin by Shota Rustaveli (2015 translation): book review

The Knight in the Panther Skin (12th century, this edition 2015) is a recent translation by American poet and author, Lyn Coffin. The author, Shota Rustaveli, is Georgia’s most loved poet. This poem is mammoth, a magnum opus – it is 1,656 verses long, separated by chapters. But readers, don’t give up, because every verse is worth reading. It is akin to 1001 Arabian Knights, Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales, or Shakespearean poetry. King Rostevan of Arabia has a daughter, Tinatin. She loves the knight Avtandil and he loves her. Verse 368 from Avtandil: ‘The doctor’s could do nothing. A dark twilight on my heart now pressed, I was on fire because of love, but nobody knew or guessed. They blamed my blood. The king decided bleeding my arm would be best; I let it be done to hide the suffering I had not confessed.’ But a knight in panther skin is seen weeping, and subsequently kills the king’s soldiers, sparing the king. Before Tinatin weds Avtandil she r...

FEAST OR FAMINE

Search This Blog