King Cobra

The king cobra only attacks humans when cornered, but Web audiences can get close to this deadly serpent without risking a bite from its venomous fangs. Featured on National Geographic Online to coincide with the television premiere of Explorer’s King Cobra, the site is home to a life-size snake that takes you on a tongue-to-tail tour of cobra facts and fiction. Hear the serpent hiss, find out how it smells with its tongue, and uncover the snake charmer’s secrets. A king cobra can reach lengths of nine to sixteen feet, and exploring each serpentine segment reveals new insight into the life and lore of this monarch of snakes. The King Cobra site was inspired by medieval Indian court painting and the snake’s enormous length. To navigate through the site, users can access a “snake key” to rollover an outline of the snake, call up themes, and click on the storyline of their choice. Users can also navigate by interacting with segments of a life-size king cobra to follow a more linear, head-to-tail narrative. Once all sections are visited, the site downloads a detailed illustration of the complete snake.