Naja haje

Also known as Asp, Cleopatra's Asp, African Brown Cobra

Egyptian cobras are large, adaptable elapids steeped in regional lore, famously revered in antiquity as symbols of pharaonic sovereignty. Primarily nocturnal or crepuscular foragers, they patrol dry savannas, agricultural borders, and rocky hillsides in pursuit of amphibians, rodents, and other reptiles. When threatened, they rear up their front third, spread a broad, unpatterned hood, and emit a deep defensive hiss before delivering rapid strikes.