TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Over the 228 Memorial Day holiday, a cobra "as thick as a wrist" was spotted slithering next to a bike path in New Taipei City.

A member of the Facebook group Breaking News Commune (爆料公社) wrote that on Tuesday (Feb. 28), while cycling on the Fuzhou bike path in New Taipei City's Banqiao District, a "huge cobra" was seen slowly slithering next to a streetlamp. Because there are children who frequent the area, the author expressed concern about their safety, and he reported the case to the animal protection office, according to ETtoday.

The cobra is one of the six most venomous snake species native to Taiwan. Because they dwell in low-altitude areas of the country that typically have a high population density, they are often seen by the public.

Some Taiwanese netizens on Breaking News Commune were frightened by the photos, making comments such as, "They even come out in winter, you really have to be careful," and, "It's so scary. It looks like a dangerous place, and it's best not to take children there."

However, others had sympathy for the wild animal, "Looking at it from another perspective, it is we who have disturbed its life," and, "Are snakes disturbing humans or are humans destroying the ecology?".

Cobra seen next to lamp post. (Facebook, Breaking News Commune photos)