Wildlife often enters human spaces not by choice, but because its habitat overlaps with ours.
In one such situation, late one night, HEAL’s rescue team received an urgent call from the Looksan Range Officer about a large King Cobra spotted on a mango tree close to houses.
A Tricky Rescue
When our team arrived, a crowd had gathered near the tree. The snake was high on the branches, directly above a house, and was repeatedly hissing — a defensive response to people moving around and shining lights.
King cobras are capable climbers, and when disturbed, they may react to stress. Attempting to handle such situations without training can be extremely dangerous.
As the tree could not be accessed directly, our team carefully positioned themselves from the rooftop of the house and, using appropriate equipment, safely brought the snake down. The cobra was examined and found to be healthy, approximately 11 feet long, and without injuries.
The rescue was completed without harm to people or the animal, and the king cobra was released into a nearby forested area, away from human settlements.
Why this matters:
King cobras are vital to ecosystem balance, helping regulate other snake populations. Fear-driven killing only disrupts this balance. Awareness, patience, and trained intervention saved lives — both human and the wild.
In November 2023, HEAL launched a project in the Gosaba block of the Sundarbans with the aim of reducing snakebite-related deaths and promoting coexistence between snakes and people. Read more about our initiative here.