- The king cobra is fond of living near streams and swamps. It will also spend time in farmers' fields and in areas where bamboo thrives. A denizen of rain forests in much of its range, it can be found in countries such as India, Vietnam, Indonesia and Malaysia. China's southern provinces have a population of king cobras and the reptile is also found in the Philippines as well.
- The coloration of a king cobra depends on its habitat. Some can be a light olive shade, while others will be blackish-brown. Other king cobras may possess white, tan or yellow bands about their bodies. The belly of a king cobra will be a dull yellow and have what seem to be bars as markings on it. The king cobra has a "hood" that it can create on its head by extending the cervical neck ribs outward, which in turn spreads the loose flap of skin to form this feature. King cobras average 12 to 15 feet in length, but specimens up to 18 feet long are not uncommon.
- The king cobra has the ability to stand up as tall as one-third of its body length, meaning that a large 18-foot snake will be able to attain the same height as a human being. It can also move in a forward direction while assuming this posture. It will often do this to try to warn off a potential threat and also to survey its surroundings when in dense underbrush or high grass. This snake is active during the daylight hours as it searches for food.
- The king cobra is renowned for killing and eating other snakes. Rat snakes are a common prey, but even other deadly poisonous snakes such as kraits and other types of cobras will be eaten. Larger king cobras have no problem eating smaller ones as well, making the creature a cannibal. The king cobra lacks cutting teeth so it must swallow its meals whole and digest them with powerful enzymes in its digestive tract. Birds and small lizards will be consumed when snakes are hard to find.
- The fangs of the king cobra are as long as half an inch. Although other types of cobras have more toxic venom, the king cobra is as dangerous as it is because it can inject such large amounts of venom into its victim with a typical bite. The venom works on the nervous system and precipitates death by affecting the breathing. Luckily, the king cobra normally will only attack a person if it stumbled upon by accident and feels threatened, or if it is protecting its nest of eggs. The king cobra is the lone snake that will actually construct a nest for its eggs and both parents will defend the area vigorously against intruders.
