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What the sources say

King CobraOphiophagus hannah

Every figure, record and mechanism on the King Cobra profile was written from a source, and this is the working table behind it: 33 claims checked word for word against these sources. The left column is what the page says. The right column is the source's own words, copied, not paraphrased; a ... marks a cut and[brackets] an insertion. Open any source and check it yourself.

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Source
01

Tan, Bourges & Tan 2021

Tan, Bourges & Tan (2021). King Cobra and snakebite envenomation: on the natural history, human-snake relationship and medical importance of Ophiophagus hannah. Journal of Venomous Animals and Toxins including Tropical Diseases.

The page saysgrowling acoustic hiss
The source saysit would raise its upper body above the ground, spreading its hood while emitting a loud growling hiss
The page saysspecialized predator of other snakes
The source saysThe King Cobra primarily feeds on other snakes, both venomous and non-venomous
The page saysRoyal shaolin predator that hunts other predators
The source saysThe King Cobra primarily feeds on other snakes, both venomous and non-venomousNote: vibe.reason: the 'other predators' are the snakes it eats.
The page saysTropical forests
The source saysKing Cobras usually inhabit tropical forestsNote: Was 'Dense tropical rainforests': ADW says 'dense or open forest'. biome.ts still reads 'tropical forests' as rainforest, so matchups are unchanged.
The page saysacross South and Southeast Asia
The source saysIt widely distributes throughout Southeast Asia on the Malay Archipelago ... and in parts of IndiaNote: Range of the pre-split species. Under Das et al. 2024, O. hannah in the strict sense runs from eastern Pakistan and northern and eastern India to central Thailand and Indo-China, which is still South and Southeast Asia.
The page saysPrimarily other snakes, including rat snakes, pythons, cobras, kraits, and vipers; it probably takes other reptiles and small mammals too when food is scarce
The source saysThe King Cobra primarily feeds on other snakes, both venomous and non-venomous, but it probably also feeds on other reptiles and small mammals when food is scarce ... A broad range of preys has been documented including rat snakes, pythons, cobras, kraits, vipers and other King Cobras
The page saysCan deliver more than a gram of neurotoxic venom, measured dry, in a single bite
The source saysKing Cobra is capable of delivering more than 1 gram (dry weight) of venom in one biteNote: The source's own framing is 'In author's experience'. 'Measured dry' keeps the dry-weight measure, and 'Can' keeps 'capable of'.
The page saysneurotoxic venom
The source saysEnvenomation by this snake is highly lethal, manifested mainly by neurotoxicity and local tissue damage.
The page saysOphiophagus, literally translates to "snake-eater"
The source saysOphio -: snake, - phagous : eating, according to the Greek etymology
The page sayshunting and eating other snakes, including venomous vipers, kraits, and pythons
The source saysA broad range of preys has been documented including rat snakes, pythons, cobras, kraits, vipers and other King CobrasNote: Was 'pit vipers': the source says vipers.
The page saysOne bite can deliver more than a gram of neurotoxic venom, measured dry
The source saysKing Cobra is capable of delivering more than 1 gram (dry weight) of venom in one bite
The page saysfield scientists often describe king cobras as placid snakes that would rather put on a threat display than attack
The source saysfield scientists often described the King Cobra as a placid snake, only manifesting aggressive behavior when disturbed or cornered, while preferring visual and acoustic threats display over attack
The page saysOphiophagus translates literally from Greek as snake-eater
The source saysOphio -: snake, - phagous : eating, according to the Greek etymology
The page saysThe king cobra specializes in hunting and eating other snakes, both venomous and non-venomous, including rat snakes, pythons, cobras, kraits, and vipers, though it probably takes other reptiles or small mammals when food is scarce
The source saysThe King Cobra primarily feeds on other snakes, both venomous and non-venomous, but it probably also feeds on other reptiles and small mammals when food is scarce ... A broad range of preys has been documented including rat snakes, pythons, cobras, kraits, vipers and other King Cobras

Source
02

Young 1991

Young (1991). Morphological basis of “growling” in the king cobra, Ophiophagus hannah. Journal of Experimental Zoology.

The page saysRather than a typical snake hiss, it lets out a deep growl
The source saysThe "growl" of the king cobra (Ophiophagus hannah) differs from the "typical" snake hiss in consisting solely of frequencies below 2,500 Hertz, with a dominant frequency near 600 Hertz.
The page saysStructural analysis of its airway suggests the sound comes from tracheal diverticula, air-pocket structures in the windpipe that act as low-frequency resonating chambers
The source saysStructural analysis of the upper respiratory tract of O. hannah suggests that the "growl" is produced by tracheal diverticula functioning as low-frequency resonating chambers.Note: 'suggests' restored: the body had stated it flatly. 'Air-pocket structures in the windpipe' glosses 'tracheal diverticula', matching the FAQ.
The page saysa 1991 study of the defensive sounds of 21 snake species found its growl consists solely of frequencies below 2,500 hertz, with a dominant frequency near 600 hertz
The source saysA bioacoustic analysis is conducted on the defensive sounds produced by 21 species of snakes. ... The "growl" of the king cobra (Ophiophagus hannah) differs from the "typical" snake hiss in consisting solely of frequencies below 2,500 Hertz, with a dominant frequency near 600 Hertz.Note: 1991 is the paper's publication year (Journal of Experimental Zoology 260).
The page saysbelow a typical snake hiss's roughly 3,000-to-13,000-hertz span
The source saysThe "typical" snake hiss is described as having a broad-frequency span (from roughly 3,000 to 13,000 Hertz) and a dominant frequency near 7,500 Hertz.
The page saysStructural analysis of its airway suggests the growl is produced by tracheal diverticula, air-pocket structures in the windpipe that act as low-frequency resonating chambers
The source saysStructural analysis of the upper respiratory tract of O. hannah suggests that the "growl" is produced by tracheal diverticula functioning as low-frequency resonating chambers.

Source
03

Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan

Ophiophagus hannah (king cobra). Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan.

The page saysbamboo thickets, and agricultural borders
The source saysbamboo thickets, adjacent agricultural areas
The page saysFemale king cobras build a nest, pushing leaves and branches into a pile where the heat of rotting plants incubates the eggs
The source saysThe female pushes leaves and branches into a nest pile where the eggs are incubated by the elevated temperatures of decomposition.Note: San Diego Zoo corroborates the nest-building ('she builds a nest with leaves'). 'The only snakes known to build a nest' was cut: only National Geographic states it, and no peer-reviewed source was found.
The page saysthen stay on top to guard them
The source saysThe female remains on top of the nest to guard the eggs

Source
04

National Geographic

King cobra, facts and photos. National Geographic.

The page saysUp to eighteen feet of hooded crown
The source saysKing cobras can reach 18 feet in lengthNote: A maximum, so the tagline carries 'up to'. The writer's 'Eighteen-foot' read as a typical size; GWR gives the average as 3-4 m.
The page saysVulnerable
The source saysThe International Union for Conservation of Nature lists king cobras as vulnerable to extinction, but hasn't assessed the risk of the new individual species.Note: Tan et al. 2021 agrees ('globally "Vulnerable" by the International Union for Conservation of Nature'). The listing is for the pre-2024 single species; iucnredlist.org refuses automated reads, so the assessment itself is a hand check.
The page saysAble to reach eighteen feet
The source saysKing cobras can reach 18 feet in length
The page saysthe king cobra (Ophiophagus hannah) is the longest venomous snake on the planet
The source saysKing cobras can reach 18 feet in length, making them the longest of all venomous snakes.
The page sayssounds almost like a dog's
The source saysemit a hiss that sounds almost like a growling dog
The page saysmaking king cobras the longest venomous snakes in the world
The source saysKing cobras can reach 18 feet in length, making them the longest of all venomous snakes.Note: Was 'the longest venomous snake species': king cobras are now four species, and the source says 'king cobras' collectively.

Source
05

San Diego Zoo Animals & Plants

Cobra. San Diego Zoo Animals & Plants.

The page saysWhen confronted, the king cobra can lift up to a third of its body off the ground
The source saysIf it feels threatened, the king cobra flares its hood ... and rears itself up. How high? Up to one-third of its body length.
The page saysin some cases high enough to look an adult human in the eye
The source saysIn some cases, this can make the cobra taller than an average man.Note: Taller than an average man puts its head at least at an adult's eye level. National Geographic says it 'can literally "stand up" and look a full-grown person in the eye'. The zoo's 'In some cases' is kept, because a third of a typical 3-4 m snake is well short of eye level.
The page saysflaring its wide ribbed neck hood
The source saysThey have specialized muscles and ribs in the neck that can flare out when the cobra feels threatened.

Source
06

Guinness World Records

Longest venomous snake (specimen). Guinness World Records.

The page saysKing cobras average three to four meters (about ten to thirteen feet) long
The source saysaverages 3–4 m in lengthNote: 3-4 m is 9.8-13.1 ft.
The page saysthe longest specimen on record, caught in Malaysia in 1937 and kept at London Zoo, had reached 5.71 meters (about eighteen feet nine inches) by 1939
The source saysthe longest specimen on record – captured in April 1937 near Port Dickson in Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia, and put on display at London Zoo in the UK – had attained a length of 5.71 m by autumn 1939Note: 5.71 m is 18 ft 8.8 in. It grew to that length in captivity. Port Dickson is on the Malay Peninsula, which Das et al. 2024 assign to O. bungarus, so under the split the record is a Sunda king cobra's.

How the table was made: a writer drafted the profile from these sources and logged each claim with its quote, a reviewer with nothing but this table checked every sentence said no more than its quote, and a script confirmed each quote appears word for word in the source. The method is in the site'sAbout page.