Question map
Not attempted
Correct
Incorrect
★
Bookmarked
Loading…
Q28
(IAS/2008)
Environment & Ecology › Biodiversity & Protected Areas › Wildlife behaviour
Answer Verified
For which one of the following snakes is the diet mainly composed of other snakes?
Result
Your answer:
—
·
Correct:
D
Explanation
Correct answer: 4) King cobra. The king cobra (Ophiophagus hannah) is characteristically ophiophagous — it largely restricts its diet to other snakes, and some individuals even specialize on a single snake species [1]. School-level text also notes that cobras will eat other snakes (cannibalism), along with birds and small mammals, underscoring their snake-focused feeding habit [2]. In contrast, kraits, Russell’s viper and rattlesnakes generally take a broader range of vertebrate prey (rodents, amphibians, lizards, or small mammals) rather than predominantly other snakes. Field accounts and dietary studies therefore identify the king cobra as the species whose diet is mainly composed of other snakes.
Sources
- [1] https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Ophiophagus_hannah/
- [2] Environment, Shankar IAS Acedemy .(ed 10th) > Chapter 12: Animal Diversity of India > BIVERSITY gF INilffi > p. 188
How others answered
Each bar shows the % of students who chose that option.
Green bar = correct answer, blue outline = your choice.
Community Performance
Out of everyone who attempted this question.
75%
got it right
✓ Thank you! We'll review this.