Driver Shocked to Find Cobra’s Body on the Road with a Stomach Wound Exposing Part of Its Meal, a Puff Adder.
“At that time, I was driving on a farm road. This road is rarely used and has had no traffic for a long while. While driving, I spotted something on the road and didn’t think much of it. But as I got closer, I realized it was a snake, specifically a cobra,” reported Marietjie Hattingh, a woman from South Africa, to Latest Sightings on May 21.
Cobra with a punctured stomach after swallowing a puff adder. (Photo: Marietjie Hattingh).
Upon closer inspection, Hattingh noticed that the cobra was dead and had a puncture in its stomach, revealing part of its meal, a large puff adder. “I was very surprised to see a snake swallowing another snake of such a large size,” she shared.
Snakes are very agile but cannot avoid all dangers on the road. Many lose their lives in traffic accidents while crossing roads in search of prey or new habitats. However, this was not the case for the cobra that Hattingh encountered.
“The strangest thing is how both snakes ended up dead? We will never know exactly what happened,” she said. The most likely scenario is that a bird attacked the cobra and won, but it could not carry the creature away or feast on the spot due to some disturbance.
Cobras are a group of venomous snakes belonging to the family Elapidae, distributed from southern Africa to South Asia and the islands of Southeast Asia. Most cobra species can expand their necks when threatened.
Their venom typically contains neurotoxins that help incapacitate prey such as small mammals, birds, lizards, and snakes, including the puff adder (Bitis arietans) – a venomous snake belonging to the Viperidae family. Scientific observations reveal that they actively hunt other snakes, becoming predators within their own kingdom of snakes. Specialized fangs and strong jaws allow them to subdue and consume their prey.
