“Rat snake”的意思、由来-开放百科全书

Previously, most rat snakes were assigned to the genus Elaphe, but many have been since renamed following mitochondrial DNA analysis performed in 2002. For the purpose of this article, names will be harmonized with the TIGR Database{{clarify|date=April 2014}}.

Species

Old World rat snakes

New World rat snakes

Nota bene: In the above species lists, an authority's name in parentheses indicates that the species was originally described in a different genus. An authority's name not in parentheses indicates that the species is still assigned to the original genus in which it was described.

Taxonomy

In recent years, some taxonomic controversy has occurred over the genus of North American rat snakes. Based on mitochondrial DNA, Utiger et al. (2002) showed that North American rat snakes of the genus Elaphe, along with closely related genera such as Pituophis and Lampropeltis, form a monophyletic group separate from Old World members of the genus. They therefore suggested the resurrection of the available name Pantherophis Fitzinger for all North American taxa (north of Mexico).^[2]^[3] Crother et al. (2008) accepted the taxonomic change to Pantherophis.^[4]

Venom

Rat snakes are not venomous. Rat snakes usually hunt and kill mice by biting with their teeth and suffocate them by constriction of its own body.

In captivity

Rat snakes are commonly kept as pets by reptile enthusiasts. The corn snake, one of the most popular pet reptiles, is a rat snake. New World species are generally thought to be more docile in captivity as opposed to Old World rat snakes, of which the opposite is assumed.^[5]

Effects of climate change on rat snakes

Positive impacts

All snakes are ectotherm species, meaning they depend on the temperature of the environment to maintain homeostasis.^[6] Although it is predicted that the current rate of climate change will be too rapid for many reptiles and amphibian species to adapt or to evolve,^[7] studies have suggested that a warmer climate may actually be beneficial to rat snake species. Global warming also poses less threats to rat snakes in temperate zones than in tropical zones as rat snake species in temperate zones can tolerate broader ranges of temperature.^[8] Global climate change will increase both day and night time temperatures. This will make the night time environment more thermally suitable for rat snakes to hunt, thereby making them more active at night.^[9] Increasing night time activity allows rat snakes to catch larger prey such as birds, since female birds usually incubate their eggs in the nest at night and have decreased ability to detect rat snakes due to poor visibility conditions. Global warming may also lead to changes in predation. Rat snakes are prey species to predators like hawks. While rat snakes are being hunted during the day, being more active at night due to warmer temperatures may allow rat snakes to be less vulnerable to predation from hawks.^[9] A warming climate also enhances food digestion in rat snakes thereby making them more efficient, which enables rat snake individuals to grow larger in size and allowing them to consume more prey.^[10] In comparison to rat snake species at relatively colder regions, rat snake species at lower latitudes tend to be larger in size due to warmer climate conditions. As the global climate warms, the average body size of rat snakes at higher latitudes will become larger, which will allow the species to catch more prey and thus increase their overall reproductive success.^[11]

Negative impacts

Eastern rat snake species in North America are experiencing negative shifts in their behaviour due to climate change and increasing temperatures. These shifts differ between the large distribution of rat snakes that range from Ontario to Texas.^[8] The increasing temperatures can negatively impact this species and can be attributed to population declines in some areas.

Rat snake populations from their northern range, such as Ontario, are experiencing a shift in hibernation emergence.^[12] The populations in these regions typically emerge from hibernation in late April.^[12] However, the increasing variability in temperature may cause rat snakes to emerge on a warm sunny day in the months of February or March.^[8] Climate change has caused winters that can have weather turn back very quickly from sunny periods with high temperatures to snow and below freezing temperatures. The early emergence of these rat snakes will begin to expose them to these fatal conditions if a snake cannot return to its hibernaculum in time.^[8] Therefore, the fluctuations in temperature affect the thermoregulation that rat snakes need for bodily functions like digestion and movement.^[10] The unpredictability of the weather is causing more rat snakes in their northern range to get caught in these cold snaps and freeze to death.^[12]

Increasing temperatures due to climate change have increased the nocturnal activity of rat snakes, especially in warmer climates such as Texas.^[8] This has allowed them to alter their predation habits and feed more on nesting birds and other accessible prey.^[13] However, their increased nocturnal activity puts them at risk to a new range of nocturnal predators. Rat snakes may not be used to the presence of nocturnal predators such as raccoons and owls and may be more vulnerable as prey.^[14] Until rat snakes are able to adapt to their relatively new predators, populations may be at risk due to heavy predation.

Life history alterations in Ontario gray rat snakes

As rat snakes are ectothermic species, they require sunlight and heat to maintain their body temperatures. Across their range in North America each species of rat snake has different ideal body temperatures. In Ontario, the average ideal body temperature of a rat snake is 28.1 degrees Celsius with free ranging gravid females tending to require a bit higher in order to meet their thermoregulatory requirements for gestation.^[15] With ambient air temperatures over the course of their entire active season (from May to September) almost never reaching the required 28.1 degrees C, rat snakes in Ontario resort to basking habitats where conditions allow temperatures to rise above normal and up to 43 degrees Celsius at the hottest times of day and year.^[15] These habitats include areas such as rock outcrops, bare ground, or edge habitat where they can bask on tree branches fully exposed to the sun. However, with climate change and an associated increase in ambient air temperature by 3 degrees C, the amount of required time spent by snakes in these habitats will decrease.^[16] This will result in alterations in the amount and time of activity of rat snakes in the province. They will have the potential to be generally more active during both the day and night as it will be easier for them to maintain their ideal body temperature. Habitat choices may also shift with increased temperatures. More time could be spent in areas such as forests or barns where the temperatures are currently too low for the snakes to spend most of their time.^[15] There will be less of a need to expose themselves in their open basking habitats, causing decreases in predator vulnerability as well as increases in thermoregulatory ability and foraging time. In addition, rat snakes in Ontario have a slower growth and maturation rates due to the cooler climate and shorter active seasons compared to other species of rat snakes further South in North America.^[17] This means that Ontario's rat snakes are more vulnerable to population declines. But, with an increase in temperature and an increase in the duration of the active season from climate change, it is possible that the growth and maturation rates of these snakes will increase.^[18]

See also

References

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2. ^{{cite journal|authors=Utiger, U., Helfenberger, N., Schätti, B., Schmidt, C., Ruf, M., & Ziswiler, V.|year=2002|title= Molecular systematics and phylogeny of Old and New World ratsnakes, Elaphe auct., and related genera (Reptilia, Squamata, Colubridae)| journal=Russian Journal of Herpetology|volume=9|issue=2|pages=105–124|url=http://sierraherps.com/pdf/Utiger%20et%20al_2002.pdf}}
3. ^Elaphe obsoleta {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090414082128/http://www.cnah.org/detail.asp?id=128 |date=14 April 2009 }} at The Center for North American Herpetology. Accessed 20 June 2008.
4. ^Crother BI, et al. (2008) Scientific and Standard English Names of Amphibians and Reptiles of North America North of Mexico: 6th edition. Herp. Rev. 37, pp. 58–59. or see pp. 64 ff in the 7th edition.
5. ^{{cite book|last1=Bartlett|first1=Richard D.|last2=Bartlett|first2=Patricia Pope|title=Corn Snakes and Other Rat Snakes: Everything about Acquiring, Housing, Health, and Breeding|publisher=Barron's Educational Series|isbn=9780764134074|page=8|url=https://books.google.co.in/books?id=HN03ObXZduIC&pg=PA8|language=en|year=2006}}
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9. ^¹{{cite web|last1=Larson|first1=Debra Levey|title=Global warming beneficial to ratsnakes|url=http://news.aces.illinois.edu/news/global-warming-beneficial-ratsnakes|website=ACES Illinois|publisher=College of Agricultural, Consumer, and Environmental Sciences|accessdate=24 March 2018}}
10. ^¹{{cite journal|last1=Knight|first1=Kathryn|title=Timeframe affects snakes' ability to cope with climate change|url=http://jeb.biologists.org/content/213/2/ii|journal=Journal of Experimental Biology|volume=213|issue=2|pages=ii|accessdate=5 April 2018|doi=10.1242/jeb.041467|year=2010}}
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12. ^¹²{{Cite journal|last=Blouin-Demers|first=G|last2=Prior|first2=Kent|last3=Weatherhead|first3=P.J.|date=2000-06-01|title=Patterns of variation in spring emergence by black rat snakes (Elaphe obsoleta obsoleta)|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/285943424|journal=Herpetologica|volume=56|pages=175–188}}
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14. ^{{Cite journal|last=DeGregorio|first=Brett A.|last2=Westervelt|first2=James D.|last3=Weatherhead|first3=Patrick J.|last4=Sperry|first4=Jinelle H.|date=2015-09-24|title=Indirect effect of climate change: Shifts in ratsnake behavior alter intensity and timing of avian nest predation|url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0304380015002379|journal=Ecological Modelling|language=en|volume=312|pages=239–246|doi=10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2015.05.031|issn=0304-3800|via=}}
15. ^¹²{{Cite journal|last=Blouin-Demers|first=Gabriel|last2=Weatherhead|first2=Patrick J.|date=2001-11-01|title=Thermal Ecology of Black Rat Snakes (Elaphe Obsoleta) in a Thermally Challenging Environment|journal=Ecology|language=en|volume=82|issue=11|pages=3025–3043|doi=10.1890/0012-9658(2001)082[3025:teobrs]2.0.co;2|issn=1939-9170}}
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