US Marines in Thailand for the Cobra Gold training exercise took part in one of the wildest parts: drinking cobra blood.
Cobra Gold, an annual military exercise for Marines, is one of the largest in the Asia-Pacific region. The 6,800 US personnel attending this year represents a showing of American muscle in an area where China is growing more powerful.
This year, seven countries are participating in Cobra Gold: the US, Thailand, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, South Korea, and Singapore.
Part of the exercise involves jungle survival, and Marines learn which plants and animals are safe to eat if they’re ever stranded.
It's also a show of strength. Indonesian troops showed off for US Defense Secretary James Mattis earlier this year by drinking snake blood in front of him.
Here's what the US Marines did this year.
Before you can drink a cobra's blood, you have to catch it.
It's not always easy.
As in years past, Marines were invited to try drinking snake blood, which could keep them alive if they were ever stranded in the jungle.
"Definitely my first time drinking snake blood," Sgt. Christopher Fiffie told Agence France-Presse after the training, adding: "It's not something we do too often in America."
Source: Agence France-Presse
"I think I'll be able to hold my own out there," Fiffie said. "The biggest take was how exactly they get their water as well as the vegetation that you can eat."
After drinking the blood, Marines also grill and eat the cobra.
It's not just about snakes. The Thai military shows the US troops everything that's safe to eat in the jungle, such as geckos.
This Marine doesn't seem too happy about eating a gecko.
In past years, Marines have eaten scorpions ...
... and bugs.
If there are no snakes around, Marines are taught how to get water from a vine ...
... as well as which local fruits and vegetables are safe to eat.
But they don't make it look that appetizing.
