“Beauty With Signature Pose”: Rinkhals Cobra Spotted in Eastern Cape Strikes Its Notorious Hood Pose

• Neville's Snake & Reptile Rescue shared a video of a highly venomous rinkhals rearing up with its hood raised in the Eastern Cape
• The rinkhals, filmed in Qonce, is a spitting snake capable of spraying venom up to 3 metres
• South Africans online could not stop talking about the striking reptile and its dramatic defensive display

A video of a rinkhals cobra throwing up its famous hood in Qonce, Eastern Cape, has been doing the rounds on Facebook since 3 September 2026. The clip was posted by Neville's Snake & Reptile Rescue, and it shows the highly venomous snake reared up in a classic defensive display, hood partially spread, in what appears to be a grassy outdoor area scattered with fallen berries.

The rinkhals, known scientifically as *Hemachatus haemachatus*, is closely related to the true cobras but has a few key differences. Unlike typical cobras, it has keeled scales and gives birth to live young rather than laying eggs. When it feels cornered or threatened, it fans out its hood to reveal a distinctive striped neck pattern, a warning that is hard to miss.

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According to Neville's Snake & Reptile Rescue, what sets the rinkhals apart from many other venomous snakes is its ability to spit venom with surprising accuracy, reaching distances of up to three metres. Eyes are a primary target, and contact can cause serious injury. The snake is also well known for playing dead, going completely limp as a last-resort defence when other tactics fail. The footage captured the snake mid-display, giving viewers a close look at its posture without any editing or added commentary. Watch the rinkhals strike its signature pose in the Eastern Cape

Mzansi stunned by cobra sighting

For many South Africans, the rinkhals is a snake they know by name but rarely want to meet face to face, and this video was a sharp reminder of why. South Africans in the comments section were spooked:

Bukelwa Mabuya wrote:

"King has got a lot of snakes yhoo"

George Litha M Bontsa said:

"A beauty with signature pose."

Mvuzo Raymond Njalisa shared:

"A couple of weeks ago it was caught in the Durban area by Jason Arnold, and he said that it must have climbed through the car without..."

Tshepang Selemela Whittles noted:

"In Sesotho we call it Masumu"

Other Briefly News stories about dangerous snake encounters

• Local snake handler Tyrone Ping captured seven venomous puff adders in and around residential areas backing onto Table Mountain near Cape Town's CBD.
• Footage shared by Slangboere showed an extremely agitated snake coiling up and aggressively charging at experienced handlers.
• A video shared by Facebook page Slangboere captured a South African cyclist nearly riding straight over a startled cobra while traversing a pine forest trail.

Source: Briefly News