Cobras

This passage describes a very dangerous snake, the cobra.

Lexile Level: 1100L

Categories: Animals & Nature

Spitting cobras actually do spit. These venomous snakes can spit poisonous venom from their mouths and blind another animal or human. Also, they can paralyze their prey by biting and injecting their poison into the animal's body. There are several different kinds of cobras, including the Indian cobra, Black cobra, and the deadly King cobra. The King Cobra is the largest poisonous snake in the world. All cobras have a hood. The hood is a flap of skin and muscle that stands out behind their heads making them look bigger. You probably will never see a cobra in the United States, but you might see one if you travel to tropical and desert regions of Africa and Asia. Cobras are timid snakes that try to scare off predators first by standing up and flaring out their hoods, but they will strike when provoked.