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Shine R, Meiri S, Shine TG, Brown GP, Goiran C. The adaptive significance of large size at birth in marine snakes. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2023; 10:231429. [PMID: 38094277 PMCID: PMC10716650 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.231429] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2023] [Accepted: 11/23/2023] [Indexed: 01/11/2024]
Abstract
Evolutionary shifts from one habitat type to another can clarify selective forces that affect life-history attributes. Four lineages of snakes (acrochordids and three clades within the Elapidae) have invaded marine habitats, and all have larger offspring than do terrestrial snakes. Predation by fishes on small neonates offers a plausible selective mechanism for that shift, because ascending to breathe at the ocean surface exposes a marine snake to midwater predation whereas juvenile snakes in terrestrial habitats can remain hidden. Consistent with this hypothesis, snake-shaped models moving through a coral-reef habitat in New Caledonia attracted high rates of attack by predatory fishes, and small models (the size of neonatal terrestrial snakes) were attacked more frequently than were large models (the size of neonatal sea snakes). Vulnerability to predatory fishes may have imposed strong selection for increased offspring size in marine snakes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Richard Shine
- School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University, New South Wales 2109, Australia
| | - Shai Meiri
- School of Zoology, Tel-Aviv University, 6997801 Tel Aviv, Israel
- The Steinhardt Museum of Natural History, Tel-Aviv University, 6997801 Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Terri G. Shine
- School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University, New South Wales 2109, Australia
| | - Gregory P. Brown
- School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University, New South Wales 2109, Australia
| | - Claire Goiran
- LabEx Corail & ISEA, Université de la Nouvelle-Calédonie, BP R4, 98851 Nouméa cedex, New Caledonia
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Golubović A, Anđelković M, Tomović L, Arsovski D, Gvozdenović S, Šukalo G, Ajtić R, Bonnet X. Death‐feigning propensity varies within dice snake populations but not with sex or colour morph. J Zool (1987) 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/jzo.12882] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- A. Golubović
- Institute of Zoology Faculty of Biology University of Belgrade Belgrade Serbia
| | - M. Anđelković
- Institute for Biological Research “Siniša Stanković” National Institute of Republic of Serbia University of Belgrade Belgrade Serbia
| | - L. Tomović
- Institute of Zoology Faculty of Biology University of Belgrade Belgrade Serbia
| | - D. Arsovski
- Macedonian Ecological Society Skopje North Macedonia
| | | | - G. Šukalo
- Faculty of Natural Sciences and Mathematics University of Banja Luka Banja Luka Bosnia and Herzegovina
| | - R. Ajtić
- Natural History Museum in Belgrade Belgrade Serbia
| | - X. Bonnet
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé Villiers‐en‐Bois France
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Talavera JB, Carriere A, Swierk L, Putman BJ. Tail autotomy is associated with boldness in male but not female water anoles. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2021. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-021-02982-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
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Abegg AD, Gomes CA, Entiauspe-Neto OM, Passos P. Does a Defensive Pseudoautotomy Mechanism Exist in the Subfamily Xenodontinae? A Study of the Genus Echinanthera. SOUTH AMERICAN JOURNAL OF HERPETOLOGY 2020. [DOI: 10.2994/sajh-d-17-00058.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Arthur Diesel Abegg
- Instituto Butantan, Laboratório Especial de Coleções Zoológicas, Avenida Vital Brasil, 1.500, Butantã, CEP 05503-900 São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Cristian Alexandro Gomes
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biologia Animal, Universidade Estadual Paulista. Rua Cristóvão Colombo, 2265, Jardim Nazareth, CEP 15054-000, São José do Rio Preto, SP, Brazil
| | - Omar Machado Entiauspe-Neto
- Universidade Federal do Rio Grande, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Laboratório de Vertebrados. Av. Itália km 8, CEP 96203-900, Rio Grande, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
| | - Paulo Passos
- Departamento de Vertebrados, Museu Nacional, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Quinta da Boa Vista, CEP 20940-040, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil
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Frank K, Dudás G. The frequency of body scarring in Caspian Whip Snakes (Dolichophis caspius Gmelin, 1789) in south-western Hungary. HERPETOZOA 2019. [DOI: 10.3897/herpetozoa.32.e35743] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Animals can suffer injuries due to diseases, intraspecific aggression and, most of all, predation events. We present field data to provide numerical information about the injuries found in the largest Caspian Whip Snake (Dolichophiscaspius) population in Hungary, near the northernmost portion of the species’ distribution range.
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Santos X, Azor JS, Cortés S, Rodríguez E, Larios J, Pleguezuelos JM. Ecological significance of dorsal polymorphism in a Batesian mimic snake. Curr Zool 2018; 64:745-753. [PMID: 30538734 PMCID: PMC6280101 DOI: 10.1093/cz/zox058] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2017] [Accepted: 10/03/2017] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Batesian mimicry is the process in which harmless species adopt the appearance of a dangerous, aposematic species. In some prey species, both Batesian mimetic and non-Batesian morphs coexist, presupposing that both morphs have to be evolutionarily advantageous. The viperine snake, Natrix maura, exhibits a zigzag dorsal pattern and antipredatory behavior that mimics European vipers. This snake also has a striped dorsal pattern that coexists with the zigzag pattern. We have examined whether individuals belonging to different geographically structured clades were more likely to exhibit a certain dorsal pattern, and whether the zigzag pattern has a protective function by exposing artificial snakes to predation in natural environments, in addition to comparing antipredatory behavior between zigzag and striped snakes also in natural environments. Our results indicate that the striped pattern was not geographically structured, but habitat-dependent. Aerial predators less frequently attacked zigzag plasticine models than striped or unpatterned models. We detected a shift in antipredator behavior between the 2 morphs, as Batesian mimicking N. maura responded to an approaching potential predator by remaining immobile or fleeing at shorter distances than did striped ones. We conclude that Batesian mimics maintain the cryptic and aposematic value by resembling vipers, whereas in open habitats the non-Batesian mimic has altered its antipredator behavior to maintain its fitness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xavier Santos
- CIBIO/InBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos da Universidade do Porto, Rua Padre Armando Quintas, Vairão, Portugal
| | - Jairo S Azor
- Departamento de Zoología, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Granada, Granada, Spain
| | - Sergio Cortés
- Departamento de Zoología, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Granada, Granada, Spain
| | - Elisa Rodríguez
- Departamento de Zoología, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Granada, Granada, Spain
| | - José Larios
- Ayuntamiento de Motril, Plaza de España 1, Motril, Spain
| | - Juan M Pleguezuelos
- Departamento de Zoología, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Granada, Granada, Spain
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Aposematism and crypsis are not enough to explain dorsal polymorphism in the Iberian adder. ACTA OECOLOGICA 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.actao.2017.11.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
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Brock KM, Bednekoff PA, Pafilis P, Foufopoulos J. Evolution of antipredator behavior in an island lizard species,Podarcis erhardii(Reptilia: Lacertidae): The sum of all fears? Evolution 2014; 69:216-31. [DOI: 10.1111/evo.12555] [Citation(s) in RCA: 59] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2014] [Accepted: 10/01/2014] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Kinsey M. Brock
- School of Natural Resources & Environment; University of Michigan, Dana Hall, 440 Church Street, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109
| | - Peter A. Bednekoff
- Department of Biology; Eastern Michigan University, Mark Jefferson Science Complex, 900 Oakwood Street, Ypsilanti, Michigan 48197
| | - Panayiotis Pafilis
- Section of Human and Animal Physiology; Department of Biology, University of Athens, Panepistimioupolis 157-84, Athens, Greece
| | - Johannes Foufopoulos
- School of Natural Resources & Environment; University of Michigan, Dana Hall, 440 Church Street, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109
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Costa H, Moura M, Feio R. A tale of lost tails: pseudoautotomy in the Neotropical snake genus Drymoluber (Serpentes: Colubridae). CAN J ZOOL 2014. [DOI: 10.1139/cjz-2014-0115] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Pseudoautotomy (no spontaneous tail breakage without regeneration) occurs in the snakes Drymoluber brazili (Gomes, 1918) and Drymoluber dichrous (Peters, 1863) throughout their geographic range. Examination of 197 specimens of D. dichrous and 60 D. brazili show, respectively, a frequency of tail breakage (FTB) in 26% and 40% of specimens, similar or higher than observed for most species with pseudoautotomy. There is no sexual difference in FTB for D. brazili, and no relationship between tail breakage and snout–vent length (SVL). For D. dicrous, tail breakage is more frequently observed in males when specimens are <710 mm SVL, but for longer specimens, the FTB is higher in females; this strange pattern may not be explained by a single hypothesis. The FTB does not vary significantly between disjunct populations of D. dichrous, suggesting that they are subject to similar predation pressures and escape rates, or minor or no effect of habitat structure on predation risk. The FTB increases with SVL in D. dichrous (but not in D. brazili, probably due to sample size), which is an indication that as the snake grows, the chance of being injured increases and partial tail loss becomes an efficient defense. The multiple tail break hypothesis is not supported for the genus Drymoluber Amaral, 1930, remaining restricted to taxa with specialized pseudoautotomy.
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Affiliation(s)
- H.C. Costa
- Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Departamento de Biologia Animal, Museu de Zoologia João Moojen. Vila Gianetti 32, Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | - M.R. Moura
- Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Departamento de Zoologia, Laboratório de Herpetologia. Avenida Antônio Carlos 6627, Pampulha, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | - R.N. Feio
- Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Departamento de Biologia Animal, Museu de Zoologia João Moojen. Vila Gianetti 32, Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil
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Dourado ÂCM, Oliveira L, Prudente ALC. Pseudoautotomy inDendrophidion dendrophisandMastigodryas bifossatus(Serpentes: Colubridae): Tail Morphology and Breakage Frequency. COPEIA 2013. [DOI: 10.1643/ch-12-008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
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