Body Temperature Variation in Free-Ranging Hognose Snakes (Heterodon platirhinos)
نویسندگان
چکیده
—Body temperatures (Tb) of eight free-ranging Heterodon platirhinos were measured with radiotelemetry throughout the year. Body temperature ranged from 5–37uC and varied with air temperature and activity. During the active season, Tb of active snakes (,30.5uC) averaged about 3uC higher than that of inactive snakes (,27.4uC). Body temperature did not differ between the sexes or between resident and nonresident snakes. At air temperatures below 30uC, Tb averaged ,3uC above air temperature; at air temperatures above 30uC, Tb averaged ,0.2uC below air temperature. Basking appears to be important in the thermal ecology of H. platirhinos. Body temperature of free-ranging active H. platirhinos monitored with radiotelemetry was similar to previous reports on Tbs of active H. platirhinos measured with cloacal thermometers. A thorough knowledge of basic thermal requirements of H. platirhinos may be useful in its
منابع مشابه
The Embeddedness of a North American Snake in the Wildlife Pet Trade and the Production of Assemblage Biogeographies
The wildlife pet trade has the potential to threaten the viability of free-ranging animal populations. Yet there are potential benefits from the informal biological knowledge produced by breeders and caretakers for these taxa. How the evolution of a species shapes and is shaped by its embeddedness in the unique and changeable spatialities of the pet trade is also of relevance. To convey these p...
متن کاملA new species of hognose pitviper, genus Porthidium, from the southwestern Pacific of Costa Rica (Serpentes: Viperidae).
A new species of terrestrial pitviper, Porthidium porrasi, is described from mesophytic forests of the Península de Osa and surrounding area of the Pacific versant of southwestern Costa Rica. It is most similar to P. nasutum and is characterized by a pattern of bands, persistence of the juvenile tail color in adults, and a high number of dorsal scales. Analysis of mtDNA sequences confirms its d...
متن کاملDaily Variation in the Body Temperatures of Free-Ranging Garter Snakes
This study describes how the body temperatures (Th) of individual garter snakes varied on a daily basis under field conditions. Temperature-sensitive radio transmitters were surgically implanted into 10 Thamnophis elegans vagrans in eastern Wash? ington. The snakes were released and monitored at 15-min intervals for periods of up to several days from June 1979 to May 1980. Operative environment...
متن کاملBehavioral thermal tolerances of free-ranging rattlesnakes (Crotalus oreganus) during the summer foraging season.
Increasing temperature due to climate change is one of the greatest challenges for wildlife worldwide. Behavioral data on free-ranging individuals is necessary to determine at what temperatures animals modify activity as this would determine their capacity to continue to move, forage, and mate under altered thermal regimes. In particular, high temperatures could limit available surface activity...
متن کاملA case study of Megaselia scalaris (Diptera: Phoridae) causing ocular myiasis in a western hognose snake.
Late instar larvae of the scuttle fly, Megaselia scalaris Loew, were found near the right eye of a live captive-reared western hognose snake, Heterodon nasicus Baird and Girard. Dissection and removal of the snake's dorsal cranial bones revealed tissue degradation of the infected eye, the optic nerve, and the brain case; we suggest that these factors contributed to the death of this snake. This...
متن کامل