Neonatal Plasticity and Adult Foraging Behavior in Garter Snakes (Thamnophis sirtalis) from Two Nearby, but Ecologically Dissimilar, Habitats

Abstract

The widely distributed Common Gartersnake (Thamnophis sirtalis) thrives in a va- riety of environments and preys upon a diversity of species. Phenotypic plasticity (including learn- ing), as well as genetic diversity, may underlie the success of this species. We examined how different types of feeding experience influence the ontogeny of foraging behavior in garter snakes from two populations with different adult diets (earthworm or amphibian/worm/mammal diets) living on Bea- ver Island in Lake Michigan. Times to approach, capture, handle, and swallow prey were recorded in controlled laboratory settings. In Experiment I, neonatal snakes reared on fish, earthworms, or a mixed diet were tested for feeding skills at their first feeding, and at 5 subsequent intervals after feeding experience and diet-switching over a period of nearly 8 months. Snakes in all three groups decreased their latencies to consume prey after feeding experience and there were some litter, but no site or sex, differences. Snakes fed initially on worms were slow at consuming fish upon diet switching, whereas snakes that initially fed on fish rapidly consumed worms upon their first feeding. Feeding skills for initial prey were retained following the diet-switching phase. Experiment II de- termined the effects of long-term feeding experience on the abilities of field-caught adult snakes to detect, capture, and consume frogs, fish, and worms. Most foraging measures differed for all three prey, but there were few site differences and no sex differences. The effects of prior feeding ex- perience appear to be less evident for adults than for neonates, which may be due to the effects of changing predator-prey body size relationships, changes in prey availability, or to constraints of the captive testing environment. Although populations on the island eat different prey, there is little evidence for genetic differentiation in foraging behavior during the several thousand years that the island has existed.