Egyptian Cobra Escapes From Bronx Zoo
Posted by: Loren Coleman on March 27th, 2011
Egyptian cobras grow as big as 8 feet long, though a more normal range is 5 to 6 feet long. The Egyptian cobra is a type of Naja species, specifically Naja haje, found in Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. It is one of the largest Naja species.
The reptile house at the Bronx Zoo remains closed while the search goes on for a snake that escaped. Staff noticed the 20-inch Egyptian cobra was missing Friday afternoon, March 25, 2011, and immediately sealed the Reptile House.
Officials say the Egyptian cobra is known to be uncomfortable in open areas. There’s no word if the snake poses a danger, though venom from Egyptian cobras can sometimes be dangerous. Officials say the snake is likely somewhere in a non-public area within the Reptile House.
The Egyptian cobra was represented in Egyptian mythology by the cobra-headed goddess Meretseger. A stylized Egyptian Cobra — in the form of the uraeus representing the goddess Wadjet — was the symbol of sovereignty for the Pharaohs who incorporated it into their diadem. This iconography was continued through the period of Ptolemaic Egypt (305 BC-30 BC).
Most ancient sources say that Cleopatra and her two attendants died by suicide by being bitten by an aspis, which translates into English as “asp.” The snake was reportedly smuggled into her room in a basket of figs. Plutarch wrote that she performed experiments on condemned prisoners and found aspis venom to be the most painless of all fatal poisons. This “aspis” was probably 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 the snake is large, so it would be hard to conceal.
The story of Cleopatra has had a long history in popular culture and several movies have been made about the Queen of Egypt. Perhaps the most popular is the film made in 1963 with Elizabeth Taylor in the title role. Movie actress Elizabeth Taylor passed away early Wednesday morning, March 23, 2011. She was 79.
About Loren Coleman
Loren Coleman is one of the world’s leading cryptozoologists, some say “the” leading living cryptozoologist. Certainly, he is acknowledged as the current living American researcher and writer who has most popularized cryptozoology in the late 20th and early 21st centuries.
Starting his fieldwork and investigations in 1960, after traveling and trekking extensively in pursuit of cryptozoological mysteries, Coleman began writing to share his experiences in 1969. An honorary member of Ivan T. Sanderson’s Society for the Investigation of the Unexplained in the 1970s, Coleman has been bestowed with similar honorary memberships of the North Idaho College Cryptozoology Club in 1983, and in subsequent years, that of the British Columbia Scientific Cryptozoology Club, CryptoSafari International, and other international organizations. He was also a Life Member and Benefactor of the International Society of Cryptozoology (now-defunct).
Loren Coleman’s daily blog, as a member of the Cryptomundo Team, served as an ongoing avenue of communication for the ever-growing body of cryptozoo news from 2005 through 2013. He returned as an infrequent contributor beginning Halloween week of 2015.
Coleman is the founder in 2003, and current director of the International Cryptozoology Museum in Portland, Maine.
I was about to say: Wasn’t it an asp?
Then I read it.
Thanks.
To kill three people one would likely need more than one snake, as to ensure a deadly discharge one would probably want the snake to drain its reserve. Hiding three snakes that big could be a challenge. Maybe the next Cleo movie can spend some time on the legerdemain required to do this. It would be entertaining for sure.
What did Cleopatra really look like? Here’s one guess.