IMPACT
King Cobras have long roamed the jungles of South and Southeast Asia. The world’s longest venomous snake is also a snake eater, hence named Ophiophagus hannah (Ophio=snake, phagus=eating) by Cantor, in 1836. The King Cobra so far has been considered as a monotypic genus which means king cobras all over the world were considered as a single species.
Dr. P. Gowri Shankar looked at their widespread distribution and hypothesised that king cobras (Ophiophagus hannah) could represent a species complex i.e., multiple species could exist.
New Species Announcement event
Presently, the King Cobra is categorised as ‘Vulnerable’ under the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species Assessment (IUCN, 2012) and listed in Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). Habitat destruction, skin trade, food, medicine and pet trade threaten King Cobra populations.
This study will significantly help:
- assess which species of king cobras need immediate attention,
- what conservation measures need implementation
- study the venom composition of these species as this will have a direct impact on the efficacy of antivenom and snake bite mitigation
- reassess the conservation status and revisit management plans for King Cobra conservation.
According to the lead author, Dr P Gowri Shankar, “It is a remarkable finding that the world was looking forward to. Spending close to a decade on this by a highly efficient team is worth every paise as these results have set the baseline for all further work related to king cobra conservation.”
The finding of new species in the currently listed ‘vulnerable’ species, will play a crucial role in saving lives, while also protecting this endemic species, a critical contributor of wellness of the rainforest ecosystem.
