Feeding: Queen snakes are specialists, feeding entirely on crayfish that have recently molted. At this point in their life, the crayfish's tough exoskeleton has yet to harden and they have no means to defend themselves. After shedding, ecdysone, a steroid hormone is released into the water. Little is known about this hormone though it is believed to help coordinate the development of many invertebrates. Being relatively large, crayfish release larger amounts of ecdysone than most other freshwater arthropods, which attract queen snakes, drawn to it like a moth to a flame. In Ontario, queen Snakes tend to favour the northern clearwater crayfish which are becoming replaced as invasive rusty crayfish colonize new areas. This, along with the introduction of anthropogenic chemicals into water ways, that mimic some of the properties of ecdysone may effect the survival of queen snake populations.
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Sources:
Ishimoto, Hiroshi, and Toshihiro Kitomoto. "The Steroid Molting Hormone Ecdysone Regulates Sleep in Adult Drosophila melanogaster." NCBI, Genetics, May 2010, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2870962/#:~:text=Ecdysone%20is%20the%20major%20steroid,20%2Dhydroxyecdysone%20(20E).. Accessed 26 Jan. 2022. Jackrel, Sara L., and Howard K. Reinert. "Behavioral Responses of a Dietary Specialist, the Queen Snake (Regina septemvittata), to Potential Chemoattractants Released by Its Prey." Bio One Complete, Journal of Herpetology, 1 Sept. 2011, bioone.org/journals/journal-of-herpetology/volume-45/issue-3/10-047.1/Behavioral-Responses-of-a-Dietary-Specialist-the-Queen-Snake-span/10.1670/10-047.1.short. Accessed 26 Jan. 2022. "Northern Clearwater Crayfish (Orconectes propinquus) Ecological Risk Screening Summary." U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, June 2015, www.fws.gov/fisheries/ans/erss/highrisk/Orconectes-propinquus-ERSS-June-2015.pdf. Accessed 26 Jan. 2022. "Queen Snake." Ontario Nature, 2022, ontarionature.org/programs/community-science/reptile-amphibian-atlas/queensnake/. Accessed 26 Jan. 2022. Reid, Scott M., and Joseph J. Nocera. "Composition of Native Crayfish Assemblages in Southern Ontario Rivers Affected by Rusty Crayfish (Orconectes rusticus Girard, 1852) Invasions - Implications for Endangered Queensnake Recovery." Aquatic Invasions, 26 Aug. 2014, www.aquaticinvasions.net/2015/AI_2015_Reid_Nocera.pdf. Accessed 26 Jan. 2022. |