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Predation on the Black-Throated Sparrow Amphispiza Bilineata Herpetology Notes, volume 13: 401-403 (2020) (published online on 26 May 2020) Predation on the black-throated sparrow Amphispiza bilineata (Cassin, 1850) and scavenging behaviour on the western banded gecko Coleonyx variegatus (Baird, 1858) by the glossy snake Arizona elegans Kennicott, 1859 Miguel A. Martínez1 and Manuel de Luna1,* The glossy snake Arizona elegans Kennicott, 1859 is Robles et al., 1999a), no specific species have been a nocturnal North American colubrid found from central identified as a prey item until this paper, in which we California to southwestern Nebraska in the United States present evidence of predation on the black-throated and south through Baja California, Aguascalientes, San sparrow Amphispiza bilineata (Cassin, 1850). Luis Potosí and Sinaloa in Mexico (Dixon and Fleet, On 20 September 2017, at around 23:00 h, an 1976). Several species have been identified as prey adult specimen of Arizona elegans was found in the items of this snake (Rodríguez-Robles et al., 1999a) municipality of Hipólito (25.7780 N, -101.4017 W, including the mole Scalopus aquaticus (Linnaeus, 1758) 1195 m a.s.l.), state of Coahuila, Mexico. The snake (Eulipotyphla: Talpidae), the rodents Peromyscus sp. had caught and was in the process of killing and then (Rodentia: Cricetidae), Chaetodipus formosus (Merriam, consuming a small bird (Fig. 1); this act lasted close to 1889), Dipodomys merriami Mearns, 1890, Dipodomys 30 minutes. After completely swallowing its prey, the ordii Woodhouse, 1853, Dipodomys sp., Perognathus snake crawled away to a safe spot under a group of inornatus Merriam, 1889, Perognathus (sensu lato) sp. nearby dead Agave lechuguilla plants. (Rodentia: Heteromyidae), the snake Phyllorhynchus The prey was identified as a black-throated sparrow decurtatus (Cope, 1868) (Squamata: Colubridae) and Amphispiza bilineata (Passeriformes: Passerellidae), the lizards Dipsosaurus dorsalis (Baird and Girard, a sparrow which is sympatric with Arizona elegans 1852) (Squamata: Iguanidae), Callisaurus draconoides throughout its range (Johnson et al., 2002). This Blainville, 1835, Phrynosoma cornutum (Harlan, 1825), sparrow is typically seen lingering and nesting in Phrynosoma coronatum (Blainville, 1835), Phrynosoma hernandesi Girard, 1858, Sceloporus cautus Smith, 1938 (Lazcano et al., 2011), Sceloporus magister Hallowell, 1854, Sceloporus sp., Uta stansburiana Baird and Girard, 1852 (Squamata: Phrynosomatidae), Aspidoscelis marmoratus (Baird and Girard, 1852) (Castañeda-Gaytan et al., 2005), Aspidoscelis tigris (Baird and Girard, 1852), Aspidoscelis sp. (Teiidae) and Xantusia vigilis Baird, 1859 (Squamata: Xantusiidae). While Arizona elegans does feed on birds (Rodríguez- 1 Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León, Manuel L. Barragán Avenue, Ciudad Universitaria, San Nicolás de los Garza, Figure 1. Glossy snake Arizona elegans starting to consume Nuevo León, 66455, México. the black-throated sparrow Amphispiza bilineata. Municipality * Corresponding author. E-mail: [email protected] of Hipólito, Coahuila, Mexico. Photo by first author. 402 Miguel A. Martínez & Manuel de Luna Masticophis flagellum Shaw, 1802 (Klauber, 1945), Phyllorhynchus decurtatus which only eats the tails (Gardner and Mendelson, 2003), Salvadora hexalepis (Cope, 1866) (Parker, 1972) (Squamata: Colubridae), Hypsiglena sp. (Squamata: Dipsadidae) (Rodríguez- Robles et al., 1999b), Crotalus atrox Baird and Girard, 1853 (Parker, 1972) and Crotalus cerastes Hallowell, 1854 (Squamata: Viperidae) (Funk, 1965) and the lizard Callisaurus draconoides (Squamata: Phrynosomatidae) (Parker, 1972). Coleonyx variegatus could be a prey item of other sympatric colubrids, dipsadids and vipers, as well as large carnivorous arthropods (Parker, 1972). Figure 2. Glossy snake Arizona elegans feeding on the run over remains of a western banded gecko Coleonyx variegatus. Acknowledgments. We are very thankful to John Sullivan of Borrego Springs, San Diego county, California, United States. Wild Herps (www.wildherps.com) who allowed us to use both Photo by John Sullivan, used with permission. his photo and information in order to publish the scavenging part of this note. References bushes and shrubs lower than 50 cm in height (Kozma Castañeda-Gaytan, G., García-de la Peña, C., Lazcano, D. and Mathews, 1997), which likely make it vulnerable to (2005): Arizona elegans arenicola (Texas Glossy Snake) Diet. attacks from foraging snakes, especially at night when Herpetological Review 36(1): 67. Dittmer, D.E., Leavitt, D.J., Ryberg, W.A., Fitzgerald, L.A. (2012): the sparrow is resting. Arizona elegans elegans (Kansas Glossy Snake) Diet and There is a single record of scavenging behaviour of feeding behavior. Herpetological Review 43(1): 143. Arizona elegans (Dittmer et al., 2012). Herein we present Dixon, J.R., Fleet, R.R. (1976): Arizona, A. elegans. Catalogue of a second case; this time on the remains of a western American Amphibians and Reptiles 179: 1–. banded gecko Coleonyx variegatus (Baird, 1858). This Funk, R.S. (1965): Food of Crotalus cerastes laterorepens in Yuma record also represents the first time Coleonyx variegatus County, Arizona. Herpetologica 21: 15–17.– Gardner, S.A., Mendelson III, J.R. (2003): Diet of the leaf-nosed is identified as a prey item of Arizona elegans. snakes, Phyllorhynchus (Squamata: Colubridae): Squamate-egg On 21 April 2009, at around 21:56 h, a juvenile Arizona specialists. The Southwestern Naturalist 48(4): 550–56. elegans was sighted on a road in Borrego Springs Hadley, N.F., Williams, S.C. (1968): Surface activities of some (33.2564 N, -116.3877 W, 208 m a.s.l.), San Diego North American scorpions in relation to feeding. Ecology 49: County, California, United States. The snake had begun 726–34. consuming, head first, a lizard which clearly had been Johnson, M.J., VanRiper, C., Pearson, K.M. (2002): Black-throated Sparrow (Amphispiza bilineata) In: The Birds of North America run over by a vehicle (Fig. 2). The act was witnessed (Poole, A. F., Gill, F. B. Editors) version 2.0 Cornell Lab of only for around five minutes in order to not scare the Ornithology, Ithaca, New York, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/ snake from its prey, which it had stopped swallowing bna.637 while in human presence. Klauber, L.M. (1945): The geckos of the genus Coleonyx with The prey was identified as a western banded gecko descriptions of new subspecies. Transactions of the San Diego Coleonyx variegatus (Squamata: Eublepharidae), a Society of Natural History 10: 133–216. Kozma, J.M., Mathews, N.E. (1997): Breeding bird communities lizard which is sympatric with Arizona elegans through and nest plant selection in Chihuahuan Desert habitats in south the north-western part of its range. This lizard is active central New Mexico. Wilson Bulletin 109: 424–436. at night; which coincides with the foraging habits of Lazcano, D., Chávez-Cisneros, J.A., Banda-Leal, J. (2011): Arizona Arizona elegans. Therefore, it is likely that the gecko is elegans elegans (Kansas Glossy Snake) Diet. Herpetological a prey item wherever they both occur. Review 42(4): 610. This record expands the knowledge on the predator- Parker, W.S. (1972): Aspects of the ecology of a Sonoran Desert population of the western banded gecko, Coleonyx variegatus prey interaction involving Coleonyx variegatus. Other (Sauria, Eublepharinae). The American Midland Naturalist predators of this lizard are known and include the 88(1): 209–224.– scorpion Hadrurus arizonensis Ewig, 1928 (Scorpiones: Rodríguez-Robles, J.A., Bell, C.J., Greene, H.W. (1999a): Food Caraboctonidae) (Hadley and Williams, 1968), the snakes habits of the glossy snake, Arizona elegans, with comparisons to Predation and scavenging behaviour of the glossy snake Arizona elegans 403 the diet of sympatric long-nosed snakes, Rhinocheilus lecontei. Journal of Herpetology 33(1): 87–92.– Rodríguez-Robles, J.A., Mulcahy, D.G., Greene, H.W. (1999b): Feeding ecology of the desert nightsnake Hypsiglena torquata (Colubridae) Copeia 1999: 93–100.– Accepted by Graham Walters.
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