This species was long thought to be identical to the forest cobra (Naja melanoleuca), but morphological and genetic differences have led to its recognition as a separate species.
[1] It differs from Naja melanoleuca in often having 17 rather than 19 midbody dorsal scale rows, a reduced number of dark ventral bands, and a tendency towards ontogenetic melanism.
Ventrally, the throat is light, and is followed by several alternating dark and light bands (usually 2-3 discrete dark bands), the remainder of the ventral side is uniformly black.
In adults, the light ventral bands often become heavily suffused with dark mottling and may become indistinguishable.
Maximum recorded length 264 cm [1] The species occurs in West Africa, and is documented from the Upper Guinea forests of Togo, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Guinea, and Guinea-Bissau.