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Herpetological Review 45(2), 2014
344 NATURAL HISTORY NOTES
one year (Ross and Marzec 1990. The Reproductive Husbandry
of Pythons and Boas. Institute for Herpetological Research, Stan-
ford, California. 270 pp.). Growth rates of wild P. molurus, either
in Florida or in Asia, are unknown, but are undoubtedly slower.
However, a demographic analysis of Florida P. molurus suggests
that females reach 200 cm SVL by two years of age (Willson et al.
2010. Biol. Invasions 13:1493–1504). Taken together, these data
suggest that at least some P. molurus in Florida reach reproduc-
tive maturity at age two. Rapid growth and high reproductive po-
tential of this species are likely strong drivers of its success as an
invasive species (Reed et al. 2012. Integr. Zool. 7:254–270).
JOHN D. WILLSON, Department of Biological Sciences, University of
Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arkansas 72701, USA (e-mail: jwillson@uark.edu);
RAY W. SNOW, Everglades National Park, National Park Service, Home-
stead, Florida 33034, USA; ROBERT N. REED, U.S. Geological Survey,
Fort Collins Science Center, Fort Collins, Colorado 80526, USA; MICHAEL
E. DORCAS, Department of Biology, Davidson College, Davidson, North
Carolina 28035, USA.
RHINOCHEILUS LECONTEI TESSELLATUS (Texas Longnose
Snake). PREDATION. Rhinocheilus lecontei tessellatus is a small
to medium-sized colubrid snake distributed across the western
two-thirds of Texas (Dixon 2013. Amphibians and Reptiles of
Texas. Texas A&M Univ. Press, College Station. 447 pp.). Little is
known concerning the natural history of R. lecontei, which prob-
ably reflects its nocturnal nature. The few documented predators
of R. lecontei include a conspecific (Lane 2009. Herpetol. Rev.
40:358), Coluber (=Masticophis) flagellum (Coachwhip; Kasper
2013. Herpetol. Rev. 44:334), and nesting Buteo jamaicensis (Red-
tailed Hawk; Steenhof and Kochert 1985. Oecologia 66:6–16).
Herein I describe predation of R. l. tessellatus by a novel mam-
malian predator, Ictidomys parvidens (Rio Grande Ground Squir-
rel; previously considered a subspecies of the Mexican Ground
Squirrel, Spermophilus mexicanus parvidens).
At ca. 0920 h on 22 May 2012, I observed a male I. parvidens
running along a graded dirt road with an object dangling from its
mouth at Lake Alan Henry Wildlife Mitigation Area, ca. 11 km S,
26 km W of Clairemont, Kent Co., Texas, USA. The squirrel came
to a stop and fed for 1–2 minutes then dropped the item and re-
treated after I clapped my hands repeatedly. I salvaged a small
section of the cloacal region of a male R. l. tessellatus. The very
fresh condition of the remains indicated this was a predator-prey
event and not carrion feeding. Also of note was the ground squir-
rel’s feeding behavior. Of the 37 mm of remaining carcass, 19 mm
was pre-vent and 18 mm was post-vent. Incisor marks indicated
that the ground squirrel fed at both ends toward the vent almost
evenly, undoubtedly segregating the cloacal area that contained
pungent musk and/or feces produced prior to death. Generally
an omnivore of seasonal vegetation and insect prey, I. parvidens
is known to take carrion and some small living vertebrate prey
(Davis and Schmidly 1994. The Mammals of Texas. Texas Parks
and Wildlife Press, Austin. 338 pp.). This account documents
both the first known mammalian predator of R. lecontei, and I.
parvidens preying on any species of snake.
STEPHEN KASPER, Lake Alan Henry Wildlife Mitigation Area, Parks
and Recreation Department, City of Lubbock, Lubbock, Texas 79401, USA;
e-mail: skasper@mail.ci.lubbock.tx.us.
SALVADORA BAIRDI (Baird’s Patch-nosed Snake). DIET. Little
is known about the diet of Salvadora bairdi. The literature men-
tions that it consumes amphibians, small mammals, and espe-
cially diurnal lizards and their eggs (Lemos-Espinal and Smith
2009. Anfibios y Reptiles del Estado de Chihuahua, México.
UNAM, Tlalnepantla, México, México. 613 pp.; Uribe-Peña et
al. 1999. Anfibios y Reptiles de las Serranías del Distrito Federal,
México. Instituto de Biología, México, Distrito Federal, México.
119 pp.). However, no mammalian prey have been identified to
species. Here we report the first record of predation on Baiomys
taylori (Northern Pigmy Mouse) by S. bairdi.
On 28 July 2013, at 2020 h, a female S. bairdi (SVL = 585 mm;
tail length = 210 mm; 30 g) was found beneath a rock at Mesa
del Huarache, Municipality of Calvillo, Aguascalientes, Mexico
(21.900171°N, 102.828405°W, datum WGS84; elev. 2321 m). The
habitat at the location consists of grassland with patches of
oak forest and tropical scrub forest ecotone. Manual palpation
caused the snake to regurgitate a partially digested B. taylori
(UAA-CV-R255), the only pigmy mouse known to occur in the
area.
RUBÉN A. CARBAJAL-MÁRQUEZ, Centro de Investigaciones Biológi-
cas del Noroeste, Instituto Politécnico Nacional No.195 Col. Playa Palo de
Santa Rita Sur, C. P. 23096, La Paz, Baja California Sur, México (e-mail: red-
man031@hotmail.com); ZAIRA Y. GONZÁLEZ-SAUCEDO, Universidad
Autónoma de Querétaro, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales, Cerro de las Cam-
panas s/n, Querétaro, Querétaro 76017, México; GUSTAVO E. QUINTERO-
DÍAZ, ERIC A. RIVAS-MERCADO and KATTIA AGUIRRE-RAMÍREZ,
Universidad Autónoma de Aguascalientes, Centro de Ciencias Básicas,
Departamento de Biología, Avenida Universidad No. 940, Aguascalientes,
Aguascalientes 20131, México.
THAMNOPHIS PULCHRILATUS (Yellow-throated Garter-
snake). DIET AND DEFENSIVE BEHAVIOR. Virtually nothing
is known about the natural history of Thamnophis pulchrilatus,
but it is thought to consume leeches, worms, fish, and amphib-
ians, like other mountain garter snakes (Rossman et al. 1996. The
Garter Snakes: Evolution and Ecology. Animal Science Series,
Univ. Oklahoma Press, Norman, 332 pp.; Ramírez-Bautista et al.
2009. Herpetofauna del Valle de México: Diversidad y Conserva-
ción. UAEH, CONABIO. Pachuca. 213 pp.). Additionally, its de-
fensive behavior is unknown. Here we document a new species
in the diet of T. pulchrilatus and its defensive behavior.
On 28 August 2013, at 2012 h, a female T. pulchrilatus (SVL =
434 mm; tail length = 109 mm; 11 g) was found beneath a rock
at Mesa del Huarache, Municipality of Calvillo, Aguascalientes,
México (21.907151°N, 102.825820°W, datum WGS84; elev. 2332
m). The habitat was grassland with patches of oak forest, and
tropical scrub forest ecotone. When we flipped the stone, the
snake tried to escape, and finally formed concentric rings, hid-
ing the head, and raising its tail in sinuous movements while
secreting musk. Following capture, the snake was palpated and
regurgitated a partially digested Hyla eximia (Mountain Tree-
frog; UAA-CV-R257). Similarly, on 15 August 2013 at the same
locality, another female (SVL = 510 mm; tail length = 132 mm;
20 g; 21.882258°N, 102.847628°W; elev. 2380 m) was discovered
basking in the grass and displayed the same defensive behavior.
On 12 June 2010, at Ciénega de Quijas, Sierra el Laurel, Aguas-
calientes (21.727264°N, 103.709210°W, datum WGS84; elev. 2362
m) another specimen was found beneath a rock. It flattened the
anterior half of its body, including the head, showing the bright
blue in the interspaces between the scales for at least 30 sec, then
tried to escape.
RUBÉN A. CARBAJAL-MÁRQUEZ, Centro de Investigaciones Bi-
ológicas del Noroeste, Instituto Politécnico Nacional No.195 Col. Playa
Palo de Santa Rita Sur, C.P. 23096, La Paz, Baja California Sur, México (e-
mail: redman031@hotmail.com); ZAIRA Y. GONZÁLEZ-SAUCEDO, Uni-
