Molecular basis for prey relocation in viperid snakes.

Background: Vertebrate predators use a broad arsenal of behaviors and weaponry for overcoming fractious and potentially dangerous prey. A unique array of predatory strategies occur among snakes, ranging from mechanical modes of constriction and jaw-holding in non-venomous snakes, to a chemical means, venom, for quickly dispatching prey. However, even among venomous snakes, different prey handling strategies are utilized, varying from the strike-and-hold behaviors exhibited by highly toxic elapid snakes to the rapid strike-and-release envenomation seen in viperid snakes.

Response of hatchling Komodo Dragons (Varanus komodoensis) at Denver Zoo to visual and chemical cues arising from prey.

Five hatchling Komodo Dragons (Varanus komodoensis) at Denver Zoo were observed in two experiments that studied the effects of visual and chemical cues arising from prey. Rate of tongue flicking was recorded in Experiment 1, and amount of time the lizards spent interacting with stimuli was recorded in Experiment 2. Our hypothesis was that young V.

Response of brown treesnakes (Boiga irregularis) to mammalian blood: whole blood, serum, and cellular residue.

Brown treesnakes (Boiga irregularis) responded with more tongue flicks to blood (from rabbits, rats, and mice) than to water. When rat blood was centrifuged at 3,500 rpm for 5 min, separating serum from cellular residue, snakes responded strongly to serum but not to cellular residue.

Response of brown tree snakes (Boiga irregularis) to human blood.

Ten specimens ofBoiga irregularis were presented with clean or bloody tampons. The latter were used by women during menses. Trial duration was 60 sec, intertrial interval was 24 hr, and the dependent variable was rate of tongue flicking (a measure of chemosensory investigation).

Prairie rattlesnakes (Crotalus viridis) respond to rodent blood with chemosensory searching.

In Experiment I, homogenized rodent tissue was applied to the lips of prairie rattlesnakes (Crotalus viridis). This treatment produced elevated rates of tongue flicking compared to controls that received water, but the elevations seen following stimulation with homogenate were not as large as those seen after snakes struck prey. In Experiment II, water, rodent blood, and integumentary cues were applied to the lips of rattlesnakes, and only blood resulted in elevated rates of tongue flicking.