Sungei Buloh Wetlands Reserve
North, Singapore
07 December 2013
"Ssssshhh!" The man signalled. Thinking that it is a sighting of a bird or a monitor lizard, Merlion Wayfarer approached quietly, respecting the uncle's need for silence. Tough, in the gravel-lined path with thousands of loose pebbles that crunch with every single step.
Reaching there, the question was asked, "What is it, Uncle?"
"Cobras!" he replied.
And there they were. Two dark shapes entwined with each other. Like sea serpents, they churned in the shallow forest stream, seeming at odds with each other.
At times, they separated, rearing up with their notorious hooded heads in some trance-like dance.
And when it finally ended, the female slithered away into the other bank of the stream, while the male suspiciously monitored his surroundings, looking in our direction before moving parallel to our direction.
Merlion Wayfarer knew when to keep her distance. These were after all, 2m-long Equatorial Spitting Cobras (Naja Sumatrana) with a potential spitting distance of up to 2m and a potentially fatal hemotoxic and neurotoxic venom.
It was a truly magnificent experience to be there to experience this!
