Herpetology Notes, volume 5: 471-472 (2012) (published online on 12 October 2012)
Predation on a bird (Piciformes, Galbulidae) by Tropidodryas serra (Serpentes, Colubridae, Dipsadinae) in a rainforest area of southeastern Brazil Davor Vrcibradic1,*, Daniel Barreto de Góes1 and Ana Maria P. T. Carvalho-e-Silva1
The genus Tropidodryas Fitzinger, 1843 comprises two species of semi-arboreal snakes [T. serra (Schlegel, 1837) and T. striaticeps (Cope, 1870)] endemic to the Brazilian Atlantic Rainforest biome and widely distributed throughout eastern Brazil (Argôlo, 1999a,b; Guedes and Marques, 2011). In spite of their wide distribution, little is known about the ecology and biology of these two species, including their food habits. Published information on the diets of these species is scarce and much of it is anecdotal. For example, Amaral (1978) mentions that T. serra (as Philodryas serra) and T. striaticeps (as Philodryas pseudoserra Amaral, 1938) feed on lizards, frogs and small birds, without giving more details. Marques, Eterovic and Sazima (2001) depicted both species as feeding on small mammals and lizards as adults and on frogs and lizards as juveniles. Two publications give data on food habits obtained from actual observations and/or gut content analysis: Sazima and Puorto (1993) recorded lizards and frogs (in juveniles) and rodents and bird feathers (in adults) in the guts of T. striaticeps and lizards (in juveniles) and rodents and a lizard (in adults) in the guts of T. serra; Marques and Sazima (2004) mentioned records of rodents (for adults) and lizards (for juveniles) as preys of T. serra in the state of São Paulo. On 19 January 2012, during the morning, a large adult T. serra was seen raiding a nest of rufous-tailed jacamars (Galbula ruficauda Cuvier, 1816) at the Reserva Rio das Pedras (ReRP – 22º59’27”S, 44º06’00”W; ca. 50 m a.s.l.), in the municipality of Mangaratiba, state of Rio de Janeiro, southeastern Brazil. The event was witnessed by an employee of the reserve, who promptly caught the snake. As he removed the reptile from the nest, which was located in a hole in a cliff, he found that 1 Departamento de Zoologia, Universidade Federal do Estado do Rio de Janeiro, Av. Pasteur 458, Urca, 22240-290, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil. *Corresponding author; e-mail:
[email protected]
it was wrapped around one jacamar fledgling. Two adult jacamars, likely the parents of the fledgling, stayed by the nest observing the proceedings. Upon examination, the fledgling was found to be already dead and was later given to the reptile, which consumed it. The snake (adult male, snout-vent length = 930 mm; tail length = 235 mm) (Fig. 1) was handed over to one of us (DBG) and kept alive in a terrarium until 19 June 2012, when it was sacrificed and fixed. It is currently deposited in the reptile collection of the Universidade Federal do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (UNIRIO 53). To our knowledge, the observation above represents the first non-anecdotal report of T. serra preying on a bird and the first for the genus Tropidodryas in which the bird was identified and the predation event actually seen. According to the employee of the reserve who caught the snake, as well as the personal observations of two of us (DBG and AMPTCS), the rufous-tailed jacamar is a relatively common bird in the ReRP (Fig. 2). It is possible that predation on this bird species (particularly nestlings and fledglings) by T. serra in this area, as well as predation on birds in general by Tropidodryas spp. may not be uncommon, with the lack of records being probably a consequence of the general lack of ecological data on these snakes. Acknowledgments. We thank Fabiano Silva Gomes of the Reserva Rio das Pedras for having brought this predation event to our knowledge and for having collected the snake and handing it over to us. We also thank Jorge Antônio L. Pontes for reviewing the manuscript.
References Amaral, A. (1978): Serpentes do Brasil: Iconografia colorida. 2nd ed. São Paulo, Melhoramentos, 246 pp. Argôlo, A.J.S. (1999a): Geographic distribution: Tropidodryas serra. Herpetological Review 30: 55-56. Argôlo, A.J.S. (1999b): Geographic distribution: Tropidodryas striaticeps. Herpetological Review 30: 56.
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Figure 1. Adult male Tropidodryas serra (UNIRIO 53) from the Reserva Rio das Pedras, state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Photo: Daniel B. de Góes
Guedes, T.B., Marques, O.A.V. (2011): Reptilia, Squamata, Serpentes, Dipsadidae, Tropidodryas striaticeps (Cope, 1869): Latitudinal and altitudinal extension and geographic distribution map. Check List 7: 78-82. Marques, O.A.V., Sazima, I. (2004): História natural dos répteis da Estação Ecológica Juréia-Itatins. In: Estação Ecológica Juréia-Itatins. Ambiente físico, flora e fauna, p. 212-236. Marques, O.A.V., Duleba, W., Eds., Ribeirão Preto, Holos. Marques, O.A.V., Eterovic, A., Sazima, I. (2001): Serpentes da Mata Atlântica. Guia ilustrado para a Serra do Mar. Ribeirão Preto, Holos. Sazima I., Puorto G. (1993): Feeding technique of juvenile Tropidodryas striaticeps: probable caudal luring in a colubrid snake. Copeia 1993: 222-226.
Figure 2. A rufous-tailed jacamar (Galbula ruficauda) at the Reserva Rio das Pedras. Photo: Daniel B. de Góes
Accepted by Philip de Pous
