West African banded cobra

The West African banded cobra (Naja savannula) is a species of cobra in the genus Naja that is found in West Africa.

West African banded cobra
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Suborder:	Serpentes
Family:	Elapidae
Genus:	Naja
Subgenus:	Boulengerina
Species:	N. savannula
Binomial name
Naja savannula (Broadley, Trape, Chirio & Wüster in Wüster et al., 2018)

This species was previously thought to be identical to the forest cobra (Naja melanoleuca), but morphological and genetic differences have led to its recognition as a separate species.^[2] It differs from Naja melanoleuca and other forest cobras in having a series of 3–8 broad, semi-divided light bands across the anterior body.

Description

Brownish black or black dorsally, with a series of 3–8 broad, cream-coloured crossbands, each partly divided by a narrow black crossband. Midbody dorsal scale rows 19, Ventrals 211–226, subcaudals 67–73. Maximum recorded length 223 cm ^[2]

Distribution

West Africa: primarily gallery forests in West African savannas and savanna woodlands; recorded from Senegal, Gambia, Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo, Benin, Niger, Nigeria, northern Cameroon and southern Chad.^[2]