Mangaluru: An injured King Cobra rescued by the Pilikula Biological Park staff from a village in Dakshina Kannada three weeks ago has recovered now.

It will be released into its habitat in the Western Ghats after a week, according to H. Jayaprakash Bhandary, director of the park.

The male King Cobra aged between seven and eight sustained severe injuries due to a dog bite at Ubaradkka village.

Chasing a cat, it had entered the house of Venkappa Gowda in the village.It resulted in a fight between the dog of the house and the snake.

The dog died after the King Cobra attacked it. The members of the house then closed the doors in fear, and Shivananda, who rescued the snake, called up the park authorities who brought it for treatment here.

Mr. Bhandary said that a King Cobra had venom enough to kill 20 persons at a time. If no immediate treatment is available, a person bitten by a King Cobra will die within half an hour.

The director said that as the park had a King Cobra breeding centre, the rescued one would be left in the forests.