HYGEN Blog

King Cobra VS Reticulated Python Photo

January 19th, 2010 | by admin |

King Cobra VS Reticulated Python - Photo By Chin Chee Chun

Reading Malaysia’s The Star newspaper today I saw one of the best photos they have ever published in their thumbnails section!  This amazing action shot by  Chin Chee Chun captures one of the most legendary battles of nature – a King Cobra taking on a Reticulated Python.

King Cobras are highly specialized in hunting and eating other snakes.  In fact other snakes make up the main part of their diet.  The drama happens when the King Cobra, which is the worlds largest venomus snake, tries to go head to head with a Reticulated Python – the worlds largest (but not heaviest) snake.

To defend themselves, Pythons wrap around their attacker and start contstricting – just as they would if they were the hunter.  In the photo you can see the Cobras main method of attack is its huge bite and huge and highly deadly fangs laden with super toxic venom.

I wonder what happend after this epic battle of Cobra VS Python?  Surely the Python was invenomated and died later.  It looks like the Cobra also has little chance of survival after being crushed in the Pythons coils.

Few battles compare to this in nature – but one comes to mind – Anaconda VS Caiman / Crocodile / Alligator and Python VS Crocodile.  Often in these battles bot the hunter and the hunted will die.

It’s probably pretty rare for this kind of showdown to happen – and even rarer to get a photo of it!  Luckily here in Malaysia – the worlds largest venomus snake (King Cobra) and the worlds laregest overall snake – the Reticulated Python – both share the same habitats in the jungle and sometimes come up close with people.  As the photo and my own experience suggests – keep a look out in roadside ditches and drains around Malaysia – because this is just the kind of place these snakes can turn up!