Following the Snakes Through Thailand: teacher key

King Cobras, grade 9 edition, written for 9th grade. Scientists in Thailand put radio transmitters in king cobras to learn where they go. Their tracking shows how the snakes use forests, farms and roads.

Read the book. Print this page for the key.

Questions and answers

1. How did the scientists find each tracked king cobra?
   • By setting traps along canals
   • By counting eggs in nests
   • By using radio signals and triangulation (answer)
2. Where did tracked king cobras move in farmland?
   • In patches of vegetation, often along irrigation canals (answer)
   • Across open fields
   • Only inside barns
3. Why is the male and female comparison only a starting point?
   • Females cannot be tracked
   • The study followed only one female and two juveniles (answer)
   • Males hide in nests
4. What may drainage culverts and bridges do for king cobras?
   • Give them nesting places
   • Keep them away from roads
   • Help them cross a highway (answer)
5. In this book, what does the word genus refer to?
   • A snake's home range
   • A group name such as Ophiophagus (answer)
   • The name of a nest

Words

• triangulation: finding by angles
• culverts: pipes under roads
• juveniles: young animals
• neurotoxins: nerve poisons
• genus: group of species