Dietary Specialization and Habitat Shifts in a Clade of Afro-Asian Colubrid Snakes (Colubridae: Colubrinae)

Barends, Jody M.; Maritz, Bryan

doi:10.1643/h2021058

Cited by 5 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 74 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Thus, contrary to other snake groups (e.g. colubrines, Barends & Maritz, 2022a;or lamprophiids, Naik et al, 2021) largebodied species of pythons do not have taxonomically broader diets than smaller species. Our findings highlight the need to further explore the diversity of ecological traits at family level within this group to reveal the drivers of these snakes' ecology.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 85%

“…Several factors other than body size can influence the evolution of differential prey use by snakes. Notably, ecological opportunity afforded by geographic colonization of novel habitats is among the most influential drivers of the evolution of diet in snakes (Barends & Maritz, 2022a; Greene, 1997; Grundler & Rabosky, 2021; Maritz et al., 2021; Naik et al., 2021). The most recent common ancestor of the pythons likely originated in Asia during the Oligocene before subsequently dispersing through Africa and Oceania respectively (Esquerré et al., 2020).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In reality, increases in snake body size typically correlate with disproportionate increases in the proportional use of endothermic prey types within their diets (Maritz et al, 2021;Naik et al, 2021;Pyron & Burbrink, 2009). As a result, larger species often have broader dietary niche breadths compared to smaller species (Barends & Maritz, 2022a). However, in cases where large-bodied species may specialize in endothermic prey and exclude ectothermic prey, increased body size may not necessarily correlate with increased prey diversity (Arnold, 1993;Shine, 1991Shine, , 1994.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Body size predicts prey preference but not diet breadth in pythons

Barends

Naik

2023

Journal of Zoology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

For gape‐limited predators like snakes that swallow their prey whole, large‐bodied species with wide gapes should theoretically be able to consume a more diverse range of prey than smaller species with narrow gapes and, therefore, may have broader diets. However, in cases where large‐bodied species exclude small prey, their diets may not necessarily be more taxonomically diverse compared to smaller species. Thus, while body size can potentially predict broad dietary preferences, it cannot always predict diet breadth. We explored the relationship between body size and diet within the Pythonidae—a morphologically diverse clade of dwarf and giant snakes. We gathered ecological data of pythons and tested if python body lengths correlated with diet breadth and diet preferences respectively within a phylogenetic framework. Next, we reconstructed ancestral diets (as proportional use of ectothermic prey in their diets) and body lengths across a phylogeny of 36 species of pythons to explore the evolutionary relationship between these traits. We demonstrate that among extant pythons, body size is not linearly associated with diet breadth but linearly correlates with proportional use of ectothermic (and inversely endothermic) prey. Small‐bodied pythons more often have specialized diets dominated by the use of ectotherm prey whereas large‐bodied pythons tend to have diets dominated by the use of endotherm prey. We further show that the most recent common ancestor of pythons was likely large‐bodied and fed on a diet comprised mostly of endothermic prey. Shifts in diet towards greater proportional use of endothermic prey coincided with increases in body size. Conversely, shifts in diet towards greater proportional use of ectothermic prey coincided with decreases in body size. Our findings contribute to the growing body of work investigating the ecomorphological determinants of snake diets and thus provide further insight into our understanding of these animals' ecology and evolution.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 85%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Body size predicts prey preference but not diet breadth in pythons

Barends

Naik

2023

Journal of Zoology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Greene et al, 1994), insect larvae (Webb et al, 2000; Fig. 5), reptile eggs (e.g., Rodríguez-Robles and Greene, 1999; Barends and Maritz, 2022a; Durso et al, 2022), roosting bats (Sorrell et al, 2011), nestling birds and mammals (e.g., Rodríguez-Robles et al, 1999b; Quick et al, 2005; Barends and Maritz, 2022b), and suckling mammals ingested with their mothers (e.g., Lanchi et al, 2012). As exemplars of payoffs from prey taken in one foraging bout, for a 50-g California Mountain Kingsnake ( Lampropeltis zonata ) that ate five 1-g nestling mice, RPM was 0.02/item and 0.1 combined; a 5-g rodent with the latter RPM would have entailed greater RPB and perhaps overall higher handling costs.…”

Section: Long Bodies Small Mouths and Mass-bulk Theorymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Refining MBT could entail holding RPM, RPB, prey shape, or ID constant to test predictions of how other variables respond across a diverse range of snakes and prey. Ideally, this approach includes evaluating individual, ontogenetic, sexual, seasonal, and geographic variation before addressing specific questions (e.g., Greene, 1984; Bea et al, 1992; Luiselli, 2006b; Wiseman et al, 2019) in a phylogenetic framework (e.g., Greene, 1983a; Vincent et al, 2006a; Barends and Maritz, 2022b). For those reasons, and because it has a broad diet and is well represented in museum collections, California Kingsnakes ( Lampropeltis getula californiae ) provided special potential for testing MBT.…”

Section: Mass-bulk Theory and Nonvenomous Colubrid Snakesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Heavy, Bulky, or Both: What Does “Large Prey” Mean to Snakes?

Greene,

Wiseman

2023

Journal of Herpetology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Paedomorphosis and retention of juvenile diet lead speciation in a group of Neotropical snakes (Colubroides-Philodryadini)

Chuliver,

Scanferla

2024

Sci Rep

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Dipsadidae is one of the largest clades of extant reptiles, showing an impressive morphological and ecological diversity. Despite this fact, the developmental processes behind its diversity are still largely unknown. In this study, we used 3D reconstructions based on micro-CT data and geometric morphometrics to evaluate the skull morphology of Philodryas agassizii, a small, surface-dwelling dipsadid that consume spiders. Adult individuals of P. agassizii exhibit a cranial morphology frequently observed in juveniles of other surface-dwelling colubroideans, represented in our analysis by its close relative Philodryas patagoniensis. Large orbits, gibbous neurocranial roof and a relatively short jaw complex are features present in juveniles of the latter species. Furthermore, we performed an extensive survey about diet of P. patagoniensis in which we detected an ontogenetic dietary shift, indicating that arthropods are more frequently consumed by juveniles of this dietary generalist. Thus, we infer that P. agassizzii retained not only the ancestral juvenile skull morphology but also dietary preferences. This study reveals that morphological changes driven by heterochronic changes, specifically paedomorphosis, influenced the retention of ancestral life history traits in P. agassizii, and therefore promoted cladogenesis. In this way, we obtained first evidence that heterochronic processes lead speciation in the snake megadiverse clade Dipsadidae.

show abstract

Dietary Specialization and Habitat Shifts in a Clade of Afro-Asian Colubrid Snakes (Colubridae: Colubrinae)

Cited by 5 publications

References 74 publications

Body size predicts prey preference but not diet breadth in pythons

Body size predicts prey preference but not diet breadth in pythons

Heavy, Bulky, or Both: What Does “Large Prey” Mean to Snakes?

Paedomorphosis and retention of juvenile diet lead speciation in a group of Neotropical snakes (Colubroides-Philodryadini)

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About