LUTTERSCHMIDT, WILLIAM I.; Sam Houston State University: Post-Prandial Thermophily in a Fossorial Snake?

Many ectothermic species demonstrate behavioral thermoregulation following feeding in an attempt to increase body temperature, thus increasing temperature-dependent rate processes associated with catabolism. This increased body temperature in reptiles is usually attained heliothermically within their microhabitat by basking in direct or filtered sunlight. Many basking reptiles have excellent visual acuity for predator avoidance. These observations pose interesting questions: Do snakes with comparatively reduced visual acuity (an adaptation for a fossorial existence) demonstrate post-prandial thermophily? If not, are the catabolic processes of digestion in such species thermally plastic? If fossorial snakes do demonstrate post-prandial thermophily, do they attain required body temperatures for digestion thigmothermally under ground to avoid the risk of predation while basking? I measured body temperatures resulting from the thermoregulatory behavior of the fossorial snake Xenopeltis unicolor in a laboratory thermal gradient before and after feeding. Mean body temperatures between pre- and post-absorptive states will be compared and discussed in relation to the life history and ecology of this unique snake species and its fossorial habits.