Table 1.

Comparison of the cobra species in Malaysia.

	Naja kaouthia	Naja sumatrana	Ophiophagus hannah
Common name	Monocled cobra	Equatorial spitting cobra	King cobra
Characteristics	Absence of occipitals, brown to greyish-brown body, with white circle hood mark	Absence of occipitals, black body, without hood mark, white marking on throat	Large head; small hood; adult has yellow, green, brown, or black body; presence of a pair of occipitals behind parietals
Length	Usually 4–5 feet, occasionally can reach up to 7.5 feet	Usually 3–3.9 feet, occasionally can reach up to 4.9 feet	Usually 8–18 feet
Distribution in Malaysia	Peninsular Malaysia, mainly in the northern part of peninsular Malaysia	Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah, and Sarawak	Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah, and Sarawak
Habitat	Not habitat-specific, can adapt to a wide range of habitats such as grassland and paddy fields	Not habitat-specific, can adapt to a wide range of habitats such as primary and secondary forests and human-surrounding environments	Habitat-specific, mainly inhabits forests
Proteomic composition of the venom	3FTx, PLA2, ohanin, CRVP, SVMP, vNGF, cardiotoxin, CVF, cytotoxin, and neurotoxin [36,37]	PLA2, neurotoxins, cardiotoxin, cytotoxin, 3FTX, CVF, SVMP, CRVP, natriuretic peptide, aminopeptidase, thaicobrin, complement-depleting factor, vNGF, and cobra serum albumin [38]	Natriuretic peptides, 3FTx, Kunitz-type inhibitor, PLA2, ohanin, CRVP, cystatin, insulin-like growth factor, SVMP, LAAO, SVSP, vNGF, vPDE, PLB, AChE, 5’NUC, and neprilysins [31,39]

Abbreviations: 3FTx—three-finger toxin, PLA₂—phospholipase A₂, CRVP—cysteine-rich venom protein, SVMP—snake venom metalloproteinase, vNGF—venom nerve-growth factor, CVF—cobra venom factor, LAAO—L-amino acid oxidase, vPDE—venom phosphodiesterase, SVSP—snake venom serine protease, PLB—phospholipase B, AChE—acetylcholinesterase, 5’NUC—5’-nucleotidase.