A mongoose takes on his arch enemy, the king cobra, in this gripping amateur footage.
The Indian grey mongoose is well-known for battling cobras in the wild. However, their combat rarely plays out near humans where it can be recorded.
When a cobra slithers onto a road at an unknown locale, this real-life Rikki Tikki Tavi wastes no time in confronting the deadly snake.
It's cobra vs. mongoose in the video below:
The mongoose initially dodges the snake's strikes and lands some bites of his own on the cobra. It also appears the mongoose takes some bites from the cobra. Fortunately, the Indian grey mongoose has a thick coat and acetylcholine receptors, which make them highly resistant to snake venom.
After a brief but fierce fight, the mongoose eventually takes down the snake with a bite to the head. He quickly drags him off into the forest to eat, or maybe as a trophy for his game room.
Either way, the locals should be grateful for the mongoose removing the dangerous snake from the road, plus giving them a free show on top of it.
At least we don't have to worry about these sorts of venomous snakes in the American woods! Although a cottonmouth or sea snake wouldn't be fun to encounter, either. You're pretty much going to have to move to the Arctic if you want to avoid snakes altogether.
The Animal Kingdom really is an epic place.
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