A cobra that became a national celebrity after it roamed a neighbourhood now has a new name

SAN DIEGO – A white monocled cobra that briefly became a national celebrity after it roamed a Southern California neighbourhood for several days in September now has a new name.

The San Diego Zoo tells the Los Angeles Times (http://lat.ms/1xEHdOj) that the cobra will be called Adhira, which in Hindi means lightning.

The Times says Adhira came in first in an online poll to find a name for the venomous cobra that was captured in Thousand Oaks and, after a period of quarantine, joined the zoo’s Reptile House.

Adhira received 4,612 votes, besting Sapheda (white), Krima (cream), Cini (Sugar), Moti (pearl) and Sundara (beautiful). Selected by the cobra’s keepers, the names were meant to reflect the Southeast Asia region where cobras are native.

The Times says the snake went on exhibit Dec. 23.