New Cobra Species is Largest and Most Venomous

Kenya: A new species of spitting cobra has been identified. It was originally thought that the snakes were part of the black-necked spitting cobra species but further study has confirmed a new species.

The new species, named Naja ashei or Ashe's spitting cobra after the founder of a snake farm and research centre in Watamu, Kenya, grows up to 9 feet in length, making it the largest cobra species. It's venom is also more potent than any other cobra.

The new species aren't picky eaters and do well in captivity. They are found Kenya, Uganda and Ethiopia. In addition to biting, spitting cobras can spray venom into the eyes of an attacker from several metres away if confronted.

NOTE -Again, I'm not always the brightest bulb in the chandelier, but when it says, "Largest and Most Venomous" and "It's venom is also more potent than any other cobra." and "The new species aren't picky eaters", how does that warrant the statement, "do well in captivity"?

How does that huge killing machine make a good pet? (Not that caiman will ever fetch the paper or bring you your slippers).

ja, that was a great discovery, that is why Im of meaning that DNA samples should be taken, and submitted to a facility, as im sure there are many species that are yet undiscovered as they resemble or look like a similar specie.

The scary bit about Naja ashei is there are noo effective anti venom available yet! and according to a article previous bites that have not responded to anti venom could be attributed to this snake!

There are some people who suspect the puff adder (Bitis arietans) could also have subspecies, it will be interesting!

Bam, to be honest with you, Id rather handle a large Cobra than a large Burm, if the Burm gets you, and theres no help around you are gone! If youre a HOT snake keeper you have chance to get to a hospital, unless there are complications.
I think a Burm can kill you faster than venom

surely its nit the largest species of cobra, the king cobra can grow alot bigger, i seen one that was 14ft long,

Crikey

Wow!

That's all I got. Wow.

oh just read up on it, its the largest species of spitting cobra, but overall the king is the biggest the one i saw lives at reptile zone in bristol and his ame is Raj, this is him

pretty! wouldn't get me anywhere near one!!!!
Anyone remember the snake scene in indiana jones? you could see the cobras reflection in the glass that was between em! sorry random memory!

Bogga wrote:

I think a Burm can kill you faster than venom

u thought right.... a fully grown burm can kill an adult man in a minute

* Starts to think why i has one *

Sqauddie, you are 100% correct, however in the case of Naja Ashei it s the largest specie of spitting cobra. the title of largest Cobra belongs to the King Cobra. I would much rather prefer to die by envenomation and if I can Choose Id go for potent neurotoxic.

Largest Spitting Cobra Found -- New Species

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/bigphotos/69362539.html



Nicholas Wadhams in Nairobi, Kenya
for National Geographic News

December 7, 2007

A new species of spitting cobra—now the largest in the world—has been named by researchers in Kenya and the United Kingdom.

The newly anointed Ashe's spitting cobra, or large brown spitting cobra (Naja ashei), can reach lengths of more than 9 feet (274 centimeters) and is believed to deliver more venom with a single bite than any other cobra on the planet.
The aggressive reptile was previously identified as a brown-colored variant of the black-necked spitting cobra, though researchers had long suspected that it merited its own species. Now blood and tissue analysis have confirmed this theory to be true.
The snake dwells in the dry lowlands of north and east Kenya, as well as in Uganda and Ethiopia.
It is named after James "Jimmy" Ashe, a prominent herpetologist who founded the Bio-Ken snake farm and research center in Watamu, Kenya, where the snake is commonly found. Bio-Ken milks snakes for their venom and sends it to labs to develop antivenin.
The findings were first published earlier this year in the animal taxonomy magazine Zootaxa by researchers at the University of Wales and the Biodiversity Foundation for Africa in Buluwayo, Zimbabwe.
But they gained wider notice on Friday when the researchers announced the new species through the nonprofit conservation group WildlifeDirect.

Royjan Taylor, the director of Bio-Ken, said the paper's authors had asked him to wait several months to give time for other herpetologists to challenge their findings. None did.
Spitting cobras eat eggs, carrion, snakes, lizards, and birds. Their venom has two uses: to kill prey and for defense. The reptiles can spray venom several yards and usually aim for the attacker's eyes, giving the snake the best chance for escape.
A Healthy Appetite

Snake experts had long believed that the brown spitting cobra was fundamentally different from the black-necked spitting cobra.




Other variants of the black-necked spitting cobra fought harder when handled and took longer to settle down in captivity. Once in their cages, they were picky eaters.
But the Ashe's cobra was less resistant to handling, generally less alert, and less picky. And they were bigger.


"There's a butcher here in Watamu who gives us chicken heads, and [the Ashe's cobra will] eat five or six chicken heads at once," Taylor said.
"That's very unlikely for the spitting cobra group."
Ashe's cobras are not the only kinds of snakes that get lumped together.
Researchers suspect that many different species of snake, such as the highly venomous puff adders, have been grouped into species that need greater differentiation.
Ineffective Antivenin
The greatest significance of the new finding may be for residents along Kenya's Indian Ocean coast, who are at risk of being bitten by the new cobra.
Its venom is similar to the species it was previously grouped with, but it can deliver about twice the amount of venom with a single bite.
That means that doctors previously treating bites from what turned out to be Ashe's cobras were only administering half the necessary dose of antivenin to victims.
(See related: "Poultry Eggs May Yield Snake Antivenin, Experts Say" [February 11, 2003].)
New developments in antivenin may be made from studying the chemical makeup of the new cobra's venom, researchers add.
"The fact that this is a separate species raises a question of the efficacy of existing antivenins," said David Warrell, a herpetologist at the University of Oxford, who was not among the co-authors.
"It hasn't been studied at all, so that's a complete mystery."
"Planet Mismanagement"
Taylor of Bio-Ken says he hopes the new species will bring in more funding for research.
He wants to study the snake's venom to see how it differs from that of other spitting cobras, and to find out what role it can play in antivenin production.
The snake is not thought to be endangered, but WildlifeDirect officials said its discovery should draw attention to the animals that are being lost to human encroachment.
"A new species of giant spitting cobra is exciting and reinforces the obvious," WildlifeDirect Chairman Richard Leakey said in a news release. (Richard Leakey is a past grantee of the National Geographic Society, which owns National Geographic News.)
"There have to be many other unreported species—but hundreds are being lost as their habitats disappear under the continued mismanagement of our planet."


http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/12/071207-new-cobra.html



December 7, 2007—Africa's Naja ashei snake (pictured) is not only the world's newest snake species—it's also the largest spitting cobra, scientists with the conservation nonprofit WildlifeDirect announced today. (Read full story.)

Blood and tissue samples helped confirm what some snake experts have long believed: that these massive, aggressive, extremely venomous snakes—which can grow to more than 9 feet (274 centimeters) long—form a separate species.

Commonly known as Ashe's spitting cobra, the new species is named after one such expert: the late James Ashe, the founder of the Bio-Ken Snake Farm research center in Watamu, Kenya. Ashe believed that this coastal snake was different from any other.

Naja ashei takes its place among the 30 or so known cobra species, including the king cobra, which is the world's largest venomous snake.


http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/12/photogalleries/biggest-cobra/

Something about cobras think its the way they raise up & face you....frightening...

tilly790 wrote:

Something about cobras think its the way they raise up & face you....frightening...

Tilly, I think I prefer a snake that lets you know hes planning on putting holes in you, than a snake you play with and all of a sudden it looks at you as food. or maybe thats just me having a twisted sense of fun theres just something about a HOT snake that I love, especially their confidence and how that snake knows exactly what kind of artillery he has, its just awsome! Not to mention Naja Ashei that is a spitter as well!
Even the mole snake, its non venomous but handling them you have to be on your toes, otherwise you gonna sit with a bite that could rival that of a staffie!

Think im pretty safe here Bogga the chances of one rising up at me over here is pretty slim