A 14-foot-long king cobra, which was brought from Rajasthan to Delhi Zoo last year, has died of age-related illness.
The rare species was the first in the National Zoological Park after 10 years and was the only king cobra there.
“We lost the king cobra a few months ago. The serpant was handed over to us by Wildlife SOS in Kota, Rajasthan in 2015. It was not keeping well since several months,” zoo curator Riyaz Khan said.
“The animal died of age-related illness,” he added.
A zoo staffer, who had taken care of the animal, said the reptile was quite inactive when it was brought to the zoo but had started picking up on its movements later.
The incident comes close on the heels of a spate of deaths of spotted deers at the Delhi zoo earlier this year.
After the arrival of king cobra, Delhi zoo had recorded double footfall. The king cobra was 31-year-old and weighs seven kilograms. The reptile was brought to the zoo in the April of 2015.
“Cobra’s diet was boneless chicken, however, red snakes, lizards were also given,” said Khan. According to experts, India has 216 species of snakes, out of which 53 are poisonous.