Cobra rears up its head, in strike pose, in Indonesia

From the archive record

The Indian cobra is a venomous snake occupying large areas of the Middle East, from India through China and Indonesia. Indian natives call it nag, naga, pambo, gokhura and nagara havu. The Indian cobra normally grows to a length of around one meter. It lives anywhere it can find suitable shelter, even in areas occupied by humans. Cobras do not normally attack humans when not threatened, except during mating season. Cobra is any of various species of venomous snakes usually belonging to the family Elapidae, most of which can expand their neck ribs to form a widened hood. Not all snakes commonly referred to as cobras are of the same genus, or even of the same family. The name is short for cobra de capelo or cobra-de-capelo, which is Portuguese for "snake with hood", or "hood-snake". When dis