4/5/2023 0 Comments Coccinella ancoralis![]() Unveil the diversity and distribution of the arachnid fauna from the high-Andean Páramo ecosystem. M.albicinctus is known only from Brazil, and was registered in the M.paraensis is distributed through the tropical forests of southern Surinam and Brazil, in the states of Pará, western Maranhão, southwest Mato Grosso and Rondônia (Feitosa, Prudente and Lima, 2007). In this paper we report on two feeding events observed in the field by two species of coral snakes with little known habits, both species being endemic to the Amazonian forest: M.paraensis and M.albicinctus. Thus, the absence of ventral scale overlap in amphisbaenids makes bite-release a better strategy to avoid physical injury from the prey individuals (Marques and Sazima, 1997). The ventral scale overlap of lizards and other snakes is an important piece of information for Micrurus to determine the head orientation of prey (Greene, 1976 Marques and Sazima, 1997). This difference is probably related to difficulties in obtaining cues about head orientation in amphisbaenids. With snake prey items, the prey is held during the entire feeding sequence until its immobilization (Marques and Sazima, 1997). When feeding on amphisbaenids, the snake bites its prey, injecting the venom, and then releases it, swallowing it only after death. M corallinus shows different handling techniques according to prey type. An exception is Micruruscorallinus Merrem 1820, from the Brazilian Atlantic Forest, for which there are several field and captive observations (Marques and Sazima, 1997 Serapicos and Merusse, 2002). The few descriptions on Micrurus feeding behavior come from observations of captivity and are restricted to a few species. This lack of information is likely due to their fossorial and secretive habits, which render proper field observations difficult. ![]() In contrast to the dietary preferences, little is known about feeding behavior in Micrurus. These records indicate that ophiophagy is common among Micrurus. ![]() snakes of the genera Typhlops, Atractus, Hydrops, Liophis, Micrurus and lizards of the genus Bachia) have strong cryptozoic tendencies (Martins and Oliveira, 1998).The literature records on the food items consumed by Micrurus are summarized in two main references, one for species from Manaus, Amazonas (Martins and Oliveira, 1998) and the other for Micrurusfrom the Western hemisphere (Campbell and Lamar, 2004). For example, all of the reported prey taxa of M.lemniscatusin the Manaus region (e.g. Moreover, it has been reported that several species consumed by Micrurus occupy a niche similar to the predator itself, which is generally cryptozoic and fossorial. Apparently, snakes of the genus Micrurus in general are very specialized predators, with preference for vertebrate preys with elongated bodies (Martins and Oliveira, 1998 Campbell and Lamar, 2004). Due to its cryptozoic and fossorial habits, natural history data of Micrurus species, such as diet or food behavior, are scarce. ![]() ![]() Besides the color pattern, hemipenes characters support the monophyly of both groups (Slowinski, 1995 Slowinski and Keogh, 2000 Campbell and Lamar, 2004 Feitosa, 2006). Traditionally, South American Micrurus are divided into two main groups based on color pattern, specifically the distribution of black rings, either in triads or monads. Micrurus is the most diverse genus, with approximately 60 species (Roze, 1996). Coral snakes belong to a monophyletic group composed of three genera (Micrurus, Leptomicrurus and Micruroides) and are distributed throughout the Americas. ![]()
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