Many accidents occur due to people’s inability to distinguish between these snake species.
King Cobra, Bull Snake, and Common Cobra are three snake species with many distinct characteristics; however, unless one is an expert or a snake catcher, many people still confuse these three species.
The most harmful confusion is the misidentification between the King Cobra and the Bull Snake (non-venomous but quite aggressive). This article aims to provide basic knowledge to help quickly identify these three snake species.
Differentiating King Cobra (Scientific Name: Ophiophagus hannah) from Common Cobra
Although the King Cobra has “cobra” in its name, it does not belong to the Naja genus (true cobras) but is the only member of the Ophiophagus genus. As a result, it has many external characteristics that are different from true cobras.
First is the length; at first glance, we are impressed because the King Cobra is the longest venomous snake in the world, while true cobras have much shorter bodies. When the snake expands its hood, we can observe the color beneath the hood and the pattern behind its neck.
The King Cobra has a yellowish-orange skin color under the neck, with a reverse V-shaped pattern on the back, while the skin color under the neck of common cobras lacks yellow and does not show the bright reverse V-shaped mark behind the neck.
The King Cobra has distinct head scales compared to common cobras. (Photo: Thành Luân).
The scales at the top of the King Cobra’s head are also very different from those of common cobras; specifically, you can quickly differentiate them by looking at the red scales (as shown above) of the King Cobra (common cobras do not have these two large scales).
The eyes of the King Cobra are also very distinctive, featuring a clearly round pupil (like a human eye) that looks fierce, whereas common cobras do not have a clear pupil but only a uniform black color.
Differentiating King Cobra from Bull Snake (Scientific Name: Ptyas mucosa)
Bull Snake and King Cobra. (Illustrative photo: Thành Luân).
The common point that causes many people to confuse these two snake species is the pattern (light-colored circular spots) running along the bodies of both snakes that look very similar at first glance. Both are also impressive in length, making it difficult to differentiate based on size alone.
Only the head of both species differs significantly, so focus on the head for identification. The head of the Bull Snake is elongated and very small, while the King Cobra has a very large head with large scales; when moving, the King Cobra often raises its head instead of slithering on the ground like the Bull Snake.
