The Egyptian cobra (''Naja haje''), also known as Ouraeus ''(derived from the

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic pe ...

word: ''οὐραῖος'' - )'', is one of the most

venomous snakes Venomous snakes are species of the suborder Serpentes that are capable of producing venom, which they use for killing prey, for defense, and to assist with digestion of their prey. The venom is typically delivered by injection using hollow or gr ...

in North Africa, which has caused many snakebite incidents to humans. It averages roughly , with the longest recorded specimen measuring .

Etymology and taxonomy

''Naja haje'' was first described by Swedish zoologist

Carl Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (; 23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after his ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné Blunt (2004), p. 171. (), was a Swedish botanist, zoologist, taxonomist, and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, ...

1758 Events January–March * January 1 – Swedish biologist Carl Linnaeus (Carl von Linné) publishes in Stockholm the first volume (''Animalia'') of the 10th edition of ''Systema Naturae'', the starting point of modern zoologi ...

. The

generic Generic or generics may refer to: In business * Generic term, a common name used for a range or class of similar things not protected by trademark * Generic brand, a brand for a product that does not have an associated brand or trademark, other ...

name ''naja'' is a Latinisation of the

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural diffusion ...

word () meaning " cobra". The specific epithet ''haje'' is derived from the Arabic word ''ḥayya'' (حية) which literally means "snake". The

snouted cobra The snouted cobra (''Naja annulifera''), also called the banded Egyptian cobra, is a highly venomous species of cobra found in Southern Africa. Description The snouted cobra is a relatively large species. Adult specimens average between in len ...

(''Naja annulifera'') and

Anchieta's cobra Anchieta's cobra (''Naja anchietae''), sometimes referred to as the Angolan cobra, is a species of venomous snake in the family Elapidae. The species is native to Southern Africa. Taxonomy Anchieta's cobra was first described by Portuguese z ...

(''Naja anchietae'') were formerly regarded as subspecies of ''Naja haje'', but have since been shown to be distinct species. The Arabian populations were long recognised as a separate subspecies, ''Naja haje arabica'', and the black populations from Morocco sometimes as ''Naja haje legionis''. A recent study found that the

Arabian cobra The Arabian cobra (''Naja arabica'') is a species of venomous snake in the family Elapidae. The species is endemic to the Arabian Peninsula. Geographic range The Arabian cobra is found in Oman, southern and western Saudi Arabia, and Yemen. ...

constitutes a separate species, ''Naja arabica'', whereas the subspecies ''legionis'' was synonymised with ''N. haje''. The same study also identified the West African savanna populations as a separate species and described it as ''

Naja senegalensis The Senegalese cobra (''Naja senegalensis'') is a species of cobra in the genus ''Naja'' that is found in West Africa. This species was long thought to be identical to the Egyptian cobra (''Naja haje''), but morphological and genetic difference ...

''. The cladogram below illustrates the taxonomy and relationships among species of ''Naja'' following Van Wallach et al. (2009), with subgenus ''Uraeus'' resolved following Trape et al. (2009):
Ouraeus (The Egyptian Cobra)

Description

The Egyptian cobra is a large species. The head is large and depressed and slightly distinct from the neck. The neck of this species has long cervical ribs capable of expanding to form a hood, like all other cobras. The snout of the Egyptian cobra is moderately broad and rounded. The eye is quite big with a round pupil. The body of the Egyptian cobra is cylindrical and stout, with a long tail. The length of the Egyptian cobra is largely dependent on

subspecies In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics ( morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all specie ...

, geographical locale, and population. The most recognizable characteristics of this species are its head and hood. The colour is highly variable, but most specimens are some shade of brown, and often a "tear-drop" mark below the eye. Some are more copper-red or grey-brown in colour. Specimens from northwestern Africa (

Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to A ...

, Western Sahara) are almost entirely black. The ventral side is mostly a creamy white, yellow brown, grayish, blue grey, dark brown or black in colouration, often with dark spots.

Scalation

''Naja haje'' has the following scalation. The

dorsal scales In snakes, the dorsal scales are the longitudinal series of plates that encircle the body, but do not include the ventral scales. Campbell JA, Lamar WW (2004). ''The Venomous Reptiles of the Western Hemisphere''. Ithaca and London: Comstock Publ ...

at midbody number 19-20. The

ventral scales In snakes, the ventral scales or gastrosteges are the enlarged and transversely elongated scales that extend down the underside of the body from the neck to the anal scale. When counting them, the first is the anteriormost ventral scale that cont ...

number 191-220. The

anal plate Anal may refer to: Related to the anus *Related to the anus of animals: ** Anal fin, in fish anatomy ** Anal vein, in insect anatomy ** Anal scale, in reptile anatomy *Related to the human anus: ** Anal sex, a type of sexual activity involving s ...

is single. The subcaudal scales are paired and number 53-65. There is 1

preocular In scaled reptiles, the ocular scales are those forming the margin of the eye.Wright AH, Wright AA. 1957. ''Handbook of Snakes''. Comstock Publishing Associates (7th printing, 1985). 1105 pp. . The name originates from the term ''oculus'' which ...

, 3 (or 2) postoculars, and 2 or 3 suboculars. The

upper labials In reptiles, the supralabial scales, also called upper-labials, are those scales that border the mouth opening along the upper jaw. They do not include the median scaleWright AH, Wright AA. 1957. Handbook of Snakes. Comstock Publishing Associates ...

number 7 (rarely 6 or 8), and are separated from the eye by the suboculars. The lower labials number 8. The temporal scales are arranged 1+2 or 1+3, varying.

Geographic range

The Egyptian cobra ranges across most of

North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...

north of the Sahara, across the savannas of West Africa to the south of the Sahara, south to the

Congo Basin The Congo Basin (french: Bassin du Congo) is the sedimentary basin of the Congo River. The Congo Basin is located in Central Africa, in a region known as west equatorial Africa. The Congo Basin region is sometimes known simply as the Congo. It con ...

and east to

Kenya ) , national_anthem = " Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"() , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Nairobi , coordinates = , largest_city = Nairobi , ...

and

Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands ...

. Older literature records from Southern Africa and the Arabian Peninsula refer to other species (see taxonomy section).

In zoos

The Egyptian cobra can also be found in captivity at zoos, both in and outside the snake’s natural range. The

Giza Zoo The Giza Zoo ( arz, حَدِيْقَة حَيْوَان ٱلْجِيْزَة, Ḥadīqat Ḥaywān Al-Gīzah) is a zoological garden in Giza, Egypt. It is one of the few green areas in the city, and includes Giza's largest park. The zoo covers ...

San Diego Zoo The San Diego Zoo is a zoo in Balboa Park, San Diego, California, housing 4000 animals of more than 650 species and subspecies on of Balboa Park leased from the City of San Diego. Its parent organization, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, is a p ...

, and the

Virginia Aquarium The Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science Center, formerly known as the Virginia Marine Science Museum, is an aquarium and marine science museum located in Virginia Beach, Virginia, just south of Rudee Inlet. The exhibits at the museum are contai ...

include the Egyptian cobra in their reptile collections.

Bronx Zoo escape

On March 26, 2011, the

Bronx Zoo The Bronx Zoo (also historically the Bronx Zoological Park and the Bronx Zoological Gardens) is a zoo within Bronx Park in the Bronx, New York. It is one of the largest zoos in the United States by area and is the largest metropolitan zoo in ...

informed the public that their reptile house was closed after a venomous adolescent female banded Egyptian cobra was discovered missing from its off-exhibit enclosure on March 25. Zoo officials were confident the missing cobra would be found in the building and not outside, since the Egyptian cobra is known to be uncomfortable in open areas. The snake's metabolism would also have been impacted by the cold weather outdoors at that time in the Bronx. The cobra was found in a dark corner of the zoo's reptile house on March 31, 2011, in good health. After a contest, she was named "Mia" for "missing in action."

Habitat

''Naja haje'' occurs in a wide variety of

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

s like,

steppes In physical geography, a steppe () is an ecoregion characterized by grassland plains without trees apart from those near rivers and lakes. Steppe biomes may include: * the montane grasslands and shrublands biome * the temperate grassland ...

, dry to moist

savanna A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland- grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground ...

s, arid semi-desert regions with some water and vegetation. This species is frequently found near water. The Egyptian cobra is also found in agricultural fields and scrub vegetation. It also occurs in the presence of humans, where it often enters houses. It is attracted to villages by rodent pests (rats) and domestic chickens. There are also notes of the Egyptian cobra swimming in the Mediterranean Sea, and is often found in water.

Behaviour and ecology

The Egyptian cobra is a

terrestrial Terrestrial refers to things related to land or the planet Earth. Terrestrial may also refer to: * Terrestrial animal, an animal that lives on land opposed to living in water, or sometimes an animal that lives on or near the ground, as opposed to ...

and

crepuscular In zoology, a crepuscular animal is one that is active primarily during the twilight period, being matutinal, vespertine, or both. This is distinguished from diurnal and nocturnal behavior, where an animal is active during the hours of dayli ...

or nocturnal species. It can, however, be seen basking in the sun at times in the early morning. This species shows a preference for a permanent home base in abandoned animal burrows, termite mounds or rock outcrops. It is an active forager, sometimes entering human habitations, especially when hunting domestic fowl. Like other cobra species, it generally attempts to escape when approached, at least for a few metres, but if threatened it assumes the typical upright posture with the hood expanded, and strikes. This species prefers to eat toads, but it will prey on small mammals, birds, eggs, lizards and other snakes.

Venom

The venom of the Egyptian cobra consists mainly of

neurotoxin Neurotoxins are toxins that are destructive to nerve tissue (causing neurotoxicity). Neurotoxins are an extensive class of exogenous chemical neurological insultsSpencer 2000 that can adversely affect function in both developing and mature nerv ...

s and

cytotoxin Cytotoxicity is the quality of being toxic to cells. Examples of toxic agents are an immune cell or some types of venom, e.g. from the puff adder (''Bitis arietans'') or brown recluse spider (''Loxosceles reclusa''). Cell physiology Treating c ...

s. The average venom yield is 175 to 300 mg in a single bite, and the

murine The Old World rats and mice, part of the subfamily Murinae in the family Muridae, comprise at least 519 species. Members of this subfamily are called murines. In terms of species richness, this subfamily is larger than all mammal families ex ...

subcutaneous value is 1.15 mg/kg. However, Mohamed et al. (1973) recorded (mice) values of 0.12 mg/kg and 0.25 mg/kg via

intraperitoneal injection Intraperitoneal injection or IP injection is the injection of a substance into the peritoneum (body cavity). It is more often applied to animals than to humans. In general, it is preferred when large amounts of blood replacement fluids are needed ...

s of specimens from

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning the North Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via a land bridg ...

. Irwin et al. (1970) studied the venom toxicity of a number of

elapids Elapidae (, commonly known as elapids ; grc, ἔλλοψ ''éllops'' "sea-fish") is a family of snakes characterized by their permanently erect fangs at the front of the mouth. Most elapids are venomous, with the exception of the genus Emydocep ...

, including ''Naja haje'' from different geographical locations. Venom potency ranged from 0.08 mg/kg to 1.7 mg/kg via intravenous injections on mice. The study also found that Egyptian cobra specimens from northern Africa, particularly those from Egypt, Tunisia, Algeria and Libya, to have significantly more potent venom than ''N. haje'' specimens found in the species' more southern and western geographical range, including Sudan and those from

West Africa West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali ...

(Senegal, Nigeria, and Mali). The venom affects the nervous system, stopping the nerve signals from being transmitted to the muscles and at later stages stopping those transmitted to the heart and lungs as well, causing death due to complete respiratory failure.

Envenomation Envenomation is the process by which venom is injected by the bite or sting of a venomous animal. Many kinds of animals, including mammals (e.g., the northern short-tailed shrew, ''Blarina brevicauda''), reptiles (e.g., the king cobra), spiders ...

causes local pain, severe swelling, bruising, blistering,

necrosis Necrosis () is a form of cell injury which results in the premature death of cells in living tissue by autolysis. Necrosis is caused by factors external to the cell or tissue, such as infection, or trauma which result in the unregulated diges ...

and variable non-specific effects which may include headache, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain,

diarrhea Diarrhea, also spelled diarrhoea, is the condition of having at least three loose, liquid, or watery bowel movements each day. It often lasts for a few days and can result in dehydration due to fluid loss. Signs of dehydration often begin w ...

, dizziness, collapse or

convulsions A convulsion is a medical condition where the body muscles contract and relax rapidly and repeatedly, resulting in uncontrolled shaking. Because epileptic seizures typically include convulsions, the term ''convulsion'' is sometimes used as a ...

along with possible moderate to severe

flaccid paralysis Flaccid paralysis is a neurological condition characterized by weakness or paralysis and reduced muscle tone without other obvious cause (e.g., trauma). This abnormal condition may be caused by disease or by trauma affecting the nerves associa ...

. Unlike some other African cobras (for example, the

red spitting cobra The red spitting cobra (''Naja pallida'') is a species of spitting cobra native to Africa. Description This medium-sized cobra attains lengths between , but may grow to a maximum length of around in very rare cases. It is often thought of as a ...

), this species does not spit venom.

Other cultures

In Ancient Egyptian culture and history

The Egyptian cobra was represented in

Egyptian mythology Egyptian mythology is the collection of myths from ancient Egypt, which describe the actions of the Egyptian gods as a means of understanding the world around them. The beliefs that these myths express are an important part of ancient Egyp ...

by the cobra-headed goddess

Meretseger Meretseger (also known as Mersegrit' or Mertseger) was a Theban cobra-goddess in ancient Egyptian religion, in charge with guarding and protecting the vast Theban Necropolis — on the west bank of the Nile, in front of Thebes — and especial ...

. A stylised Egyptian cobrain the form of the

uraeus The Uraeus (), or Ouraeus (Ancient Greek: , ; Egyptian: ', "rearing cobra"), ''(plural: Uraei)'' is the stylized, upright form of an Egyptian cobra, used as a symbol of sovereignty, royalty, deity and divine authority in ancient Egypt. Symbol ...

representing the goddess

Wadjet Wadjet (; egy, wꜢḏyt "Green One"), known to the Greek world as Uto (; grc-koi, Οὐτώ) or Buto (; ) among other renderings including Wedjat, Uadjet, and Udjo, was originally the ancient local goddess of the city of Dep. It became part ...

was the symbol of sovereignty for the

Pharaoh Pharaoh (, ; Egyptian: '' pr ꜥꜣ''; cop, , Pǝrro; Biblical Hebrew: ''Parʿō'') is the vernacular term often used by modern authors for the kings of ancient Egypt who ruled as monarchs from the First Dynasty (c. 3150 BC) until th ...

s who incorporated it into their

diadem A diadem is a type of crown, specifically an ornamental headband worn by monarchs and others as a badge of royalty. Overview The word derives from the Greek διάδημα ''diádēma'', "band" or "fillet", from διαδέω ''diadéō'', " ...

. This iconography was continued through the end of the ancient Egyptian civilization (30 BC). Most ancient sources say that

Cleopatra Cleopatra VII Philopator ( grc-gre, Κλεοπάτρα Φιλοπάτωρ}, "Cleopatra the father-beloved"; 69 BC10 August 30 BC) was Queen of the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt from 51 to 30 BC, and its last active ruler.She was also a ...

and her two attendants committed suicide by being bitten by an Egyptian cobra. The snake was reportedly smuggled into her room in a basket of figs.

Plutarch Plutarch (; grc-gre, Πλούταρχος, ''Ploútarchos''; ; – after AD 119) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for hi ...

wrote that she performed experiments on condemned prisoners and found aspis venom to be the most painless of all fatal poisons. This "aspis" was likely to be ''Naja haje'' (the Egyptian cobra). However, the accounts of her apparent suicide have been questioned, since death from this snake's venom is relatively slow and it can cause damage to the tissue sometimes, and the snake is large, so it would be hard to conceal.

As a pet

The Egyptian cobra garnered increased attention in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...

in the fall of 2006 when a pet cobra became loose and forced the evacuation of a house in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

for more than three hours when it was believed to have sought refuge in the home's walls. The owner was fined $17,000 and jailed for a year.

In magic acts

In July 2018, Aref Ghafouri was bitten by an Egyptian cobra while preparing for a show in Turkey. He was evacuated to Egypt for treatment with the

antivenom Antivenom, also known as antivenin, venom antiserum, and antivenom immunoglobulin, is a specific treatment for envenomation. It is composed of antibodies and used to treat certain venomous bites and stings. Antivenoms are recommended only if th ...

and made a full recovery.

References

External links

*
Egyptian Cobra
{{Taxonbar, from=Q244377

Egyptian cobra The Egyptian cobra (''Naja haje''), also known as Ouraeus ''(derived from the Ancient Greek word: ''οὐραῖος'' - )'', is one of the most venomous snakes in North Africa, which has caused many snakebite incidents to humans. It averages ro ...

Reptiles of North Africa Reptiles of South Sudan Snakes of Africa Wadjet Fauna of Egypt