VENOMOUS SNAKES

Here at the Zoo we have one of the largest collections of venomous snake in Europe with over 25 different species, including some of the world’s most deadly such as the Black Mamba, and the Forest Cobra. Venomous snakes have venom glands and specialized teeth for the injection of venom. They use modified saliva, and snake venom, usually delivered through highly specialized teeth, such as hollow fangs, for the purpose of prey immobilization and self-defense.

BLACK-NECKED SPITTING COBRA

The black-necked spitting cobra (Naja nigricollis), is a species of spitting cobra found mostly in sub-Saharan Africa.

FOREST COBRA

The forest cobra (Naja melanoleuca), is a highly venomous species of cobra, native to Africa.

INDO-CHINESE SPITTING COBRA

The Indochinese spitting cobra (Naja siamensis), is a species of spitting cobra found in Southeast Asia.

LEVANT VIPER

The Levant Viper or Blunt-Nosed Viper (Macrovipera lebetina) is a venomous viper species found in North Africa, much of the Middle East as well as here in Cyprus.

LONG-NOSED VIPER

The Long-Nosed Viper (Vipera ammodytes meridionalis), is a venomous viper subspecies found in Greece and Turkish Thrace.

MOZAMBIQUE SPITTING COBRA

The Mozambique spitting cobra (Naja mossambica) is a species of spitting cobra native to Africa. In color the snake is slate to blue, olive or tawny black above, with some or all scales black-edging. Below, salmon pink to purple yellowish, with black bars across the neck and ventrals speckled or edged with brown or black; young specimens sometimes have pink or yellow bars on the throat.

PETER'S COBRA

The Peter's Cobra (Naja samarensis), is a highly venomous species of spitting cobra native to the Visayas and Mindanao island groups of the Philippines. Their coloring varies from a black and yellow to green.

RED SPITTING COBRA

The red spitting cobra (Naja pallida), is a species of spitting cobra native to Africa. It is often thought of as an attractive species; it is usually bright salmon-red contrasted with a broad black throat band and subocular teardrop markings. However, the color of this species does have variation, which usually depends on where in Africa a particular specimen is found.

SNOUTED COBRA

The snouted cobra (Naja annulifera), also called the banded cobra, is a species of cobra found in southern Africa. Colouration of dorsal scales may vary from yellowish to greyish-brown, dark brown or blue-black. Ventral scale colouration is yellow with darker mottles.

URACOAN RATTLESNAKE

The Uracoan Rattlesnake (Crotalus durissus vegrandis) is a venomous pitviper subspecies found only in Venezuela in South America.

WHITE LIPPED ISLAND PIT VIPER

The White-Lipped Island Viper (Trimeresurus albolabris insularis), is a venomous pitviper subspecies found in Indonesia.

ZEBRA SPITTING COBRA

The Zebra Spitting Cobra (Naja nigricincta) is a species of spitting cobra in the genus Naja belonging to the family Elapidae.
This species had long been considered to be a subspecies of the black-necked spitting cobra (Naja nigricollis), but morphological and genetic differences have led to its recognition as a separate species.