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Philippine cobra. Photo by Mario Lutz/Wikipedia |
The Philippine cobra (Naja philippinensis) and 12 other reptiles that can be found in the island chain have been added to the country's list of threatened species, Philstar.com reports. In addition to the cobra,Pilipinas EcoWarriors head Juan Miguel Zubiri said that the country has also added the loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta), Southeast Asian box turtle,spiny terrapin, south-east Philippine spitting cobra (Naja samarensis),equatorial spitting cobra, king cobra (Ophiophagus Hannah), Southeast Asian softshell turtle, Batanes pit viper, Panay monitor lizard and three subspecies of the Malay monitor lizard to its list of threatened species.
The Panay monitor lizard is listed as critically endangered while the other reptiles on the list are listed as vulnerable or endangered. Zubiri, a former Philippine senator and chair of that country's environmental and natural resources committee attributed the decline of these reptiles to"indiscriminate" land conversion and other human related factors. The Philippine cobra can be found in low lying plains, jungles, and forested areas as well as fields and grasslands. It grows to about 5 feet in length and feeds on small rodents, frogs, lizards, birds, and other snakes.