A highly poisonous Chinese cobra mysteriously turned up in a downtown Hong Kong park, sparking a massive search before it was later found dead.

　　A zoologist said the snake, treated as a delicacy by local gourmets, may have escaped from a restaurant.

　　Authorities called in experts after a man spotted the snake on Monday in downtown Victoria Park, said a police spokeswoman.

　　The area was cordoned off before the reptile was found dead, the South China Morning Post reported yesterday.

　　The newspaper identified the snake as a Chinese cobra, which can deliver life-threatening bites and is commonly found in rural parts of Hong Kong.

　　The snakes can grow to 2 meters in length.

　　Gary Ades, senior manager of the Kadoorie Farm & Botanic Garden research institute, said it is unusual to find snakes "in the center of the concrete jungle."

　　"Most of the snakes that appear in the city are either escapees from nearby snake restaurants or abandoned pets," Ades said.

　　(The Associated Press)