It was a showdown between two of India’s top four venomous snake species and surprisingly was caught on camera. The incident took place at a farmhouse in Vadodara in Gujarat where a six-feet-long Indian Cobra took on a five-foot-long Russell’s Viper.

The shocking episode happened in Madhu Farm in Kalali where the caretaker of the premises saw the Indian Cobra engaged in a vicious battle with the Russell’s viper. On spotting these reptiles, the caretaker called the Wildlife SOS helpline which is operated in collaboration with the Gujarat Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

The Wildlife SOS-GSPCA team immediately rushed to the spot but by that time the Indian Cobra had defeated the Viper and was eating it by slowly swallowing the head first!

The team did not interfere with the natural behaviour of these reptiles and later removed the Cobra and released it into its natural environment.

Raj Bhavsar, President of GSPCA said: “The situation could have gone the other direction as well. In the case the viper would have emerged victorious it would have swallowed the cobra! This is common behaviour amongst snakes and usually, the bigger snake wins.”

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