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| Pleguezuelos, J.M.; Fernández-Cardenete, J.R.; Honrubia, S.; Feriche, M.; Villafranca, C.. |
| In many vertebrates, foraging mode (active versus sit-and-wait) is tied to some traits of their natural history such as morphology, type of prey, rate of food acquisition, and survival rate. We explore the correlates between some morphological traits of a Mediterranean colubrid and its feeding ecology and the predation risk, by comparing data on teeth number, tail damage, and diet. A large sample (n = 368) of the Ladder Snake, Rhinechis scalaris is used. The species feeds almost exclusively on endotherms, mainly mammals (nearly 95% of the diet in mass), which set R. scalaris among the most stenophagous snakes in the western Palaearctic. There is also a high percentage of motionless prey in the diet (up to 50% in prey mass), such as nestling birds, mammals... |
| Tipo: Article / Letter to the editor |
Palavras-chave: Feeding habits; Teeth number; Tail breakage; Spain; 42.82; 42.62. |
| Ano: 2007 |
URL: http://www.repository.naturalis.nl/record/256128 |
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