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--Boundary_(ID_E2pr4H5Je/loiQl/Ntyttg) Content-type: text/plain; CHARSET=US-ASCII; delsp=yes; format=flowed Content-transfer-encoding: 7BIT I made a very serious boo-boo when I wrote on Sept. 29/09: Another very interesting nat. hist. tidbit made it onto the call-in show when someone reported a 20-cm. red-bellied/redbelly snake in his basement. Richard, who is an expert on herptiles (especially tadpoles), told us all that this snake was probably seeking out some place that was damp and below the frost line where it could overwinter. He went on to say that red-bellied snakes prey extensively on red-backed/redback salamanders (both of them can be found under logs and in other hidden places). And the red-backed salamander can defensively lose its tail like many lizards do, so that apparently the stomach contents of studied red-bellied snakes are biased toward just the tails of the salamanders, which can then escape and possibly survive to grow new-but-smaller tails and then perhaps get found again by a snake? (BUT SEE BELOW!) ERRATUM ABOVE!: I should have looked it up before reporting it as I heard it on the radio! A check in my bible for N.S. herptiles, namely John Gilhen's well-known 1984 book, revealed a mix-up of the natural history of two of our snake species. We have two species that are specialists on particular prey: our red-bellied snake is a specialist on slugs, while the ring-necked snake eats mostly red- backed salamanders. Cheers from Jim in Wolfville Jim (James W.) Wolford 91 Wickwire Ave. Wolfville, Nova Scotia, Canada B4P 1W3 phone 902-542-9204 e-mail <jimwolford@eastlink.ca> "In wildness is the preservation of the world" -- Henry David Thoreau ------------------------ --Boundary_(ID_E2pr4H5Je/loiQl/Ntyttg) Content-type: text/html; CHARSET=US-ASCII Content-transfer-encoding: quoted-printable <html><body style=3D"word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; = -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "> I made a very serious boo-boo when I wrote on Sept. = 29/09:<div><br></div><div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: = 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><font face=3D"Helvetica" = size=3D"3" style=3D"font: 12.0px Helvetica">Another very interesting = nat. hist. tidbit made it onto the call-in show when someone reported a = 20-cm. <b>red-bellied/redbelly snake</b> in his basement. Richard, = who is an expert on herptiles (especially tadpoles), told us all that = this snake was probably seeking out some place that was damp and below = the frost line where it could overwinter. He went on to say that = <b>red-bellied snakes prey extensively on red-backed/redback salamanders = </b>(both of them can be found under logs and in other hidden places). = And the red-backed <b>salamander can defensively lose its tail</b> = like many lizards do, so that apparently the stomach contents of studied = red-bellied snakes are biased toward just the tails of the salamanders, = which can then escape and possibly survive to grow new-but-smaller tails = and then perhaps get found again by a snake? <b> (BUT SEE = BELOW!)</b></font></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: = 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal = 12px/normal Helvetica; min-height: 14px; "><br></div><div = style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; = margin-left: 0px; "><font face=3D"Helvetica" size=3D"3" style=3D"font: = 12.0px Helvetica"><b>ERRATUM ABOVE!</b>: I should have looked it up = before reporting it as I heard it on the radio! A check in my = bible for N.S. herptiles, namely John Gilhen's well-known 1984 book, = revealed a <b>mix-up</b> of the natural history of two of our snake = species. We have two species that are specialists on particular = prey: our <b>red-bellied snake</b> is a specialist on <b>slugs</b>, = while the <b>ring-necked snake</b> eats mostly <b>red-backed = salamanders</b>. </font></div><br></div><div><div = style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; = margin-left: 0px; "><font face=3D"Helvetica" size=3D"3" style=3D"font: = 12.0px Helvetica">Cheers from Jim in Wolfville</font></div><div = style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; = margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; = min-height: 14px; "><br></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; = margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><font = face=3D"Helvetica" size=3D"3" style=3D"font: 12.0px Helvetica">Jim = (James W.) Wolford</font></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; = margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><font = face=3D"Helvetica" size=3D"3" style=3D"font: 12.0px Helvetica">91 = Wickwire Ave.</font></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: = 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><font face=3D"Helvetica" = size=3D"3" style=3D"font: 12.0px Helvetica">Wolfville, Nova Scotia, = Canada</font></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; = margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><font face=3D"Helvetica" = size=3D"3" style=3D"font: 12.0px Helvetica">B4P 1W3</font></div><div = style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; = margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; = min-height: 14px; "><br></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; = margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><font = face=3D"Helvetica" size=3D"3" style=3D"font: 12.0px Helvetica">phone = 902-542-9204</font></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: = 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><font face=3D"Helvetica" = size=3D"3" style=3D"font: 12.0px Helvetica">e-mail <<a = href=3D"mailto:jimwolford@eastlink.ca">jimwolford@eastlink.ca</a>></fon= t></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: = 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; = min-height: 14px; "><br></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; = margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><font = face=3D"Helvetica" size=3D"3" style=3D"font: 12.0px Helvetica">"In = wildness is the preservation of the world" -- Henry David = Thoreau</font></div><div style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; = margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; "><font face=3D"Helvetica" = size=3D"3" style=3D"font: 12.0px = Helvetica">------------------------</font></div><div><br></div></div></bod= y></html>= --Boundary_(ID_E2pr4H5Je/loiQl/Ntyttg)--
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