Black-necked spitting cobra
Naja nigricollis
— Where the name comes from
Naja comes from the Sanskrit nāga, the divine serpent of the Indian religions, reaching Europe through the Portuguese cobra de capello, “snake with a hood”. Nigricollis means “black-necked”. In its case the hood does not merely make it look bigger: it helps it aim.
— Facts
- Group
- Reptiles · Reptilia
- Order
- Squamates
- Habitat
- Savannah, scrub, farmland, villages
- Range
- Western and central sub-Saharan Africa
- Size
- 150–200 cm, up to 220 cm; 1–2 kg
- Diet
- Toads, rodents, birds, eggs, other snakes
- Lifespan
- 20 years
— Characteristics
- 01
It projects venom as far as three metres, aiming for the eyes.
- 02
The opening of its fangs faces forward instead of downward.
- 03
If spitting fails it may play dead, rolling onto its back.
— What sets it apart
The spitting is not for hunting — it has no effect on prey — but purely for defence, and it aims for the eyes with an accuracy that has been measured: the animal tracks the movements of the target’s head and sprays while it moves, raising the odds of a hit. In 2021 a study showed that spitting arose three separate times among African and Asian cobras, and each time in step with the arrival in the region of primates and hominins: that is, of animals that defend themselves by throwing things.
