# Spitting Cobra? warning graphic pics



## Em_J (Dec 14, 2009)

Hi all....

I don't really frequent this section, but I thought you guys would be best to know... A few years ago I volunteered at a primate sanctuary in South Africa for a month. We went just at the end of Winter, so snakes on the site were starting to emerge from hibernation. In the month I was there they had to relocate at least three rather large (what I can only assume were African Rock pythons) who were hanging around the baby's enclosures....

One morning one of the volunteers reported seeing a "brown snake" under her bed - she only caught a glimpse and couldn't be more specific with her I.D-ing... We thought it would never be seen again, but later that night another of our volunteers came screaming out of the shower (it was outdoors), shampoo still in her hair saying there was a snake in there with her. She had to pass literally inches away from it to get out of the shower... The person who organised the volunteer programme immediately id'd it as a spitting cobra and because of the confined space it had got itself into, coupled with where we were and the number of volunteers around the decision was made to shoot it, since it was felt nobody could move it safely (they would have tried otherwise).

I have always wondered about that snake, was it what they thought it was and did they make the right call? I was copying a load of photographs files over and I found the pictures I took of it the following morning... Perhaps you could let me know, do people keep these at all?

Sorry for the novel, and sorry about the pictures too... Very sad....


















And one of the reasons I was there (and to make the thread more cheerful)... Zorro... The fugliest orphaned baboon you're ever likely to meet...


----------



## JohnR (Jan 1, 2010)

Shame about the snake but it is a spitting cobra, Naja mossambica, Mozambiq spitting cobra.


John


----------



## wildlifewarrior (Jun 26, 2008)

lol i can see the bamboons weaner.....mines bigger, so that makes me feel happy at least


----------



## abandonallhope (Jun 19, 2009)

wildlifewarrior said:


> lol i can see the bamboons weaner.....mines bigger, so that makes me feel happy at least


In all fairness the Baboon probably has a far larger brain........:Na_Na_Na_Na:

I can't help with the ID but thats an interesting tale, I'm suprised no attempt was made to try to remove the snake but I suppose they took the action they deemed safest for all around.


----------



## skimsa (Sep 28, 2007)

Native African are so afraid of snakes it untrue.

When i lived over there it was my job to move all the snakes, and one day we had a spitting cobra in the rocks around the door frame to reception. I could not get it out so we got a long stick and poked it till it came out on its own (not the best method but it worked), once on the ground hooked into a snake bag and taken to another part of the park.

To be honest killing the snakes is the most common way of dealing with them. I offered all the local famers a "snake catching" service, so if they saw a snake we'd come get it and realease it in the park rather than killing it. Most of the time when we turned up there was a snakes body rather than a snake.

In fairness though when you have children you dont want them playing with friendly mr black mamba so you put the fear of god into them, thats how everyones raised.


----------



## Em_J (Dec 14, 2009)

JohnR said:


> Shame about the snake but it is a spitting cobra, Naja mossambica, Mozambiq spitting cobra.
> 
> 
> John


Thanks for that I never _really_ doubted that they'd got it wrong, but it would have been awful if they had... Are they a species people keep?



wildlifewarrior said:


> lol i can see the bamboons weaner.....mines bigger, so that makes me feel happy at least


Well you wouldn't really have to try that hard!



abandonallhope said:


> In all fairness the Baboon probably has a far larger brain........


This baboon, unfortunately not!! He was a bit special! He'd only take to a couple of volunteers at a time (I'm very proud he chose me, but I'm not sure what that says about me!), and his way of introducing himself was to grab hold of your hair, peer really closely into your face, scare himself and wee on your leg - after that though you were the best of friends... He also had a bald tail, wrinkly face and bushy eyebrows - not the prettiest! He used to dribble quite a lot too... My favourite though :flrt:



abandonallhope said:


> I can't help with the ID but thats an interesting tale, I'm suprised no attempt was made to try to remove the snake but I suppose they took the action they deemed safest for all around





skimsa said:


> To be honest killing the snakes is the most common way of dealing with them. I offered all the local famers a "snake catching" service, so if they saw a snake we'd come get it and realease it in the park rather than killing it. Most of the time when we turned up there was a snakes body rather than a snake



To be honest had it not backed itself into a corner like it had an attempt would have been made to try to move it I think - they had snake hooks etc, but where it was meant it was deemed just that bit too risky....


----------



## skimsa (Sep 28, 2007)

Em_J said:


> To be honest had it not backed itself into a corner like it had an attempt would have been made to try to move it I think - they had snake hooks etc, but where it was meant it was deemed just that bit too risky....


Poor thing just doing what comes natural. Sounds like you were with a good bunch, Southerners always are :2thumb:


----------



## jasper1 (Apr 15, 2007)

Em_J said:


> He was a bit special! and his way of introducing himself was to grab hold of your hair, peer really closely into your face, scare himself and wee on your leg - after that though you were the best of friends... He also had a bald tail, wrinkly face and bushy eyebrows - not the prettiest! He used to dribble quite a lot too...


Are we still talking about WLW...?


----------



## wildlifewarrior (Jun 26, 2008)

jasper1 said:


> Are we still talking about WLW...?


bully me day is it


----------



## Snakes Incorporated (Jun 27, 2006)

This is what they are supposed to look like.


----------

