🦉 Great horned owl vs King cobra 🐍
The king cobra is about 6 times as long as the great horned owl.
Getting the animals ready…
| Row | 🦉 Great horned owl | 🐍 King cobra |
|---|---|---|
| Size The king cobra is about 6 times as long as the great horned owl. | 18 to 25 in46 to 63 cm1 | 10 to 12 ft3.1 to 3.7 m2 |
| Top speed Neither has a checked number yet. | no checked number yet | no checked number yet |
| Weight We don't have a checked number for the king cobra yet. | 2.2 to 3.8 lb998 g to 1.7 kg3 | no checked number yet |
| Lives The king cobra lives a bit longer than the great horned owl. | 13 to 15 years13 to 15 years3 | 17 years17 years2 |
| Eats Both eat meat. | mice, rabbits, birds and even skunks | mostly other snakes |
| Lives in They can live in the same kind of place. | forests, deserts and towns across North America and into South America | forests, bamboo thickets and swamps near streams, from northern India to southern China |
Which one? Great horned owl or king cobra
🏁 Who would win the race?
We don't have a checked top speed for the great horned owl or the king cobra yet, so there is no race.
We only race. Real animals mostly avoid each other. A race is the only fair contest: who reaches the tree first, by top speed. Our face-off books compare real numbers, and nobody gets hurt.
9 things to know about Great horned owl vs King cobra
- The great horned owl: Its "horns" are just feathers, and it can turn its head far around.
- The king cobra: A very long snake that eats mostly other snakes.
- They are different kinds of animal. The great horned owl is a bird, so it has feathers and lays eggs; the king cobra is a reptile, so it has scaly skin.
- The king cobra is about 6 times as long as the great horned owl: 2 against 1.
- The king cobra lives a bit longer than the great horned owl. Usual lifespans: 3 for the great horned owl and 2 for the king cobra.
- Both eat meat. The great horned owl eats mice, rabbits, birds and even skunks; the king cobra eats mostly other snakes.
- The great horned owl lives in forests, deserts and towns across North America and into South America. The king cobra lives in forests, bamboo thickets and swamps near streams, from northern India to southern China. They can live in the same kind of place.
- The great horned owl: doing fine (Least Concern on the IUCN Red List). 4
- The king cobra: needs help (Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List). 5
Wow facts
🦉 Great horned owl
- Its wings make almost no sound.
- It coughs up a pellet of fur and bones after a meal.
- It often nests in an old nest that a hawk or crow built.
🐍 King cobra
- A king cobra eats mostly other snakes.
- It is longer than most grown-ups are tall.
- It lives near streams in forests, bamboo and swamps.
Questions kids ask about Great horned owl and King cobra
Which is bigger, great horned owl or king cobra?
The king cobra is about 6 times as long as the great horned owl: 2 against 1.
Which is heavier, great horned owl or king cobra?
We only have a checked weight for the great horned owl: 3. Scientists are still working out the other.
Which lives longer, great horned owl or king cobra?
The king cobra lives a bit longer than the great horned owl. Usual lifespans: 3 for the great horned owl and 2 for the king cobra.
What do great horned owl and king cobra eat?
Both eat meat. The great horned owl eats mice, rabbits, birds and even skunks; the king cobra eats mostly other snakes.
Where do great horned owl and king cobra live?
The great horned owl lives in forests, deserts and towns across North America and into South America. The king cobra lives in forests, bamboo thickets and swamps near streams, from northern India to southern China. They can live in the same kind of place.
Do great horned owls eat king cobras?
The great horned owl eats mice, rabbits, birds and even skunks. King cobras are not in that list, which comes from its page. And the king cobra is about 6 times as long as the great horned owl.
Do king cobras eat great horned owls?
The king cobra eats mostly other snakes. Great horned owls are not in that list, which comes from its page.
Who would win, great horned owl or king cobra?
We never show fights, because a fight is not a fair way to compare animals. They can share the same kind of place, and real animals mostly keep out of each other's way. What we can compare is how big, how heavy, how fast, how long they live and what they eat, as above.
📤 Share this pair
The link carries only the two animals’ names: peabody.kids/animals/compare/great-horned-owl-vs-king-cobra
Where these numbers come from
- National Park Service, Bryce Canyon, checked 30 October 2026.
- University of Michigan Museum of Zoology, Animal Diversity Web: Ophiophagus hannah (king cobra), checked 10 November 2026.
- National Park Service, Golden Spike, checked 30 October 2026.
- Wikidata, from the IUCN Red List, checked 30 October 2026.
- Wikidata, from the IUCN Red List, checked 10 November 2026.