Mozambique spitting cobra Introduction

The Mozambique spitting cobra is a species of venomous spitting cobra native to Africa.  It is a very common species of snake found in the African region. The species is widely distributed in the eastern parts of Southern Africa, most of Mozambique, Swaziland, Zimbabwe, southern Angola, Zambia, Malawi, northeastern Namibia, Northern Botswana and southern Tanzania including on Pemba island. They are found mostly in lowland forest and moist savannas, where it prefers broken, rocky country, hollow logs, termite mounds and animal holes. They are often found close to water sources, unlike the Egyptian Cobra, to which it will readily retreat if disturbed. Their dorsal side color ranges from slate gray to olive brown with a dark edge in each scale. In the ventral region, they are yellowish or salmon pink, with some black crossbars and blotches on the throat, sometimes forming a band across the ventral scales. This cobra’s diet mainly consists of amphibians, other snakes, birds, eggs, small mammals, and occasionally even insects. This cobra will also occasionally scavenge and eat carcasses even when in advanced stage of decomposition.