Rare and deadly albino cobra slithers into house during intense rainstorm

By Harry Baker published 4 days ago
The white snake was safely captured by wildlife experts in India before being released back into the wild.



The albino cobra outside of a house in Coimbatore, India. (Image credit: WNCT)

An extremely rare and potentially deadly albino cobra had to be removed from a house in India after the white snake slithered in during a severe rainstorm.

Neighbors spotted the pale cobra climbing out of fast flowing water on the ground and into a passageway beside the house in Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu state, southern India, on May 3. Experts from the Wildlife and Nature Conservation Trust (WNCT) later arrived to safely capture the snake, which was then released into the wild.

The 5-foot-long (1.5 meters) snake was identified as an albino Indian cobra (Naja naja), WNCT representatives wrote on Facebook(opens in new tab). The species, which are also known as the spectacled cobra, is considered one of the "big four" snake species that are responsible for the most snakebite cases in India.

Albinism is a genetic condition that prevents animals from producing the pigment melanin, which gives color to their skin, fur, feathers or scales. It is recessive, meaning both parents must possess the gene and pass it onto their offspring. Albino animals also lack pigment in their irises, meaning that they have pink or red eyes, which results in reduced vision or total blindness; moreover, their skin is highly susceptible to sunburns.

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