Has your snake (any kind) ever fished a f/t rodent out of a bowl of water?

[Homebody]

No, it's not exactly "foraging". Try showing him the food when he's hungry & ready to grab it, then drop it in the water bowl near him (assuming that he won't drop it there on his own like my TP did), & see if he sees & goes after the food in the water. It's about being able to recognize it even when the scent is covered up by water, & it's not being wiggled for attention.

Fair. It'll still be obviously dead though. It might work with a mouse. Reptilinks are a tougher sell. I'll try it and let you know how it goes.

[Gio]

I have to post about this- as I've been feeding many snakes & many kinds for many years, but I've never seen one that managed to fish out their f/t prey after they accidentally dropped it into their bowl of water. Normally, they just lose interest, but today, one of my Trans Pecos rat snakes did just that.

I had fed him a small f/t mouse & had just offered him a second one- he was up on his branches & accepting food from my tongs when suddenly the second one slipped from his mouth (he doesn't wrap dead prey- he just eats it politely from tongs). Plop, right into the water bowl.

I watched to see what he'd do, because he kept staring at it, & soon he was nosing it in the water. It didn't sink, so maybe that would have made the difference?

But still I think this is remarkable, because this is a DESERT snake- not many bodies of water around where they evolved. They do have good vision though, & have always seemed to me to be fairly smart as snakes go. But I was still amazed when he ate this mouse out of his water bowl. In the past, I've always had to fish them out myself for all kinds of snakes, many of which were from environments known for more bodies of water. I think I'll let Mitali* go fishing more often?

Guess what? After eating the second mouse, he went into his hide, but now he's back out, waiting by his water bowl, just above it! No kidding! I love these snakes, & it's obvious they can learn.

*Mitali- Hindu for "friend" He's 15 years old, & 5' long, by the way...so snakes are never too old to learn new things, eh?

Absolutely yes. Almost every one of mine has.





The Bredli, which is a desert species seems to be a pro. Although there are watercourse areas in their habitat, they are not full year round.










This typically happens right after I change their waters out for fresh.

[Bogertophis]

Absolutely yes. Almost every one of mine has....The Bredli, which is a desert species seems to be a pro. Although there are watercourse areas in their habitat, they are not full year round.....This typically happens right after I change their waters out for fresh.

You have some talented snakes there! Isn't it odd that even some desert species are good at this? Maybe it has more to do with their overall skills & vision. It's like when you train some dogs, & put an item under something else, some catch on & search for it, but to others, it's just "gone". And I know exactly what you mean about them polluting their water bowls right after they've been changed. Mine do that too. Snakes!

[EL-Ziggy]

I don’t have pictures but my experiences echo Gio’s. Most of my snakes, the boas, colubrids, and pythons, have eaten their meals after they, or I, dropped it in their water bowls.

BTW- It’s great to see you Gio! Your critters look amazing as always!!

[Gio]

I don’t have pictures but my experiences echo Gio’s. Most of my snakes, the boas, colubrids, and pythons, have eaten their meals after they, or I, dropped it in their water bowls.

BTW- It’s great to see you Gio! Your critters look amazing as always!!

Zig,,,,

I feel the same. I am really happy to see and Richard popping up here lately.

Boger has been keeping things going as a mod. Good job!

JM pops in rarely but we are in touch by text often.

This board has been running longer than any snake board I've ever joined which is pretty cool.

Unfortunately, I have no pictures of the Royal doing the same but she has as well.

All is well here and nothing new as far as new critters.

Everybody is growing still and the Royal will be 13 years old and the boa will be 12 this summer.

Apologies for the semi derail. I'm happy to see Zig and Daski and Richard.

I may have to find another photo place other than Imgur as I can't seem to post what I load there. All of these photos are old.

Again, another derail but worth it to say hello!

[Nutriaitch]

But still I think this is remarkable, because this is a DESERT snake- not many bodies of water around where they evolved.

as a current resident of their natural range, I can confirm this statement.




sorta on topic, today my BP "played with" his food unlike I've ever seen him do before.
f/t adult mouse. he attacked it with malice in his heart (like he almost always does).
squeezed him a lot longer than normal.

then drug him around his habitat. dropping him, then snooping around. pick him up and move him again.
position him into perfect eating position, then just carried and dropped him. tried bring him into his favorite hide. then dragged him back out.
at one point it even looked like he going to try to bury it like a dog would a bone.

he did this for a good 30 minutes before periscoping, taking a glance around, then eating him.

[bcr229]

My pythons and boas pretty regularly dunk prey in the water bowl during the grab/wrap phase. No biggie, just pick up the ball of snake and set it on the enclosure floor.

OTOH my rattlesnake hit a rat once and the rat managed to climb into the water bowl before expiring. Mr. Buzz Butt couldn't find it. That was not fun.

[Bogertophis]

Again, & just to be clear, I'm not talking about snakes that hang onto their prey & dunk it in the water...yes, that happens. I was asking about snakes that completely drop their prey into the water (lose contact totally) & then proceed to fish it out- apparently by using visual cues only, since water pretty much covers the scent.

Either way though, our snakes get a bit creative, don't they?

[Zincubus]

Again, & just to be clear, I'm not talking about snakes that hang onto their prey & dunk it in the water...yes, that happens. I was asking about snakes that completely drop their prey into the water (lose contact totally) & then proceed to fish it out- apparently by using visual cues only, since water pretty much covers the scent.

Either way though, our snakes get a bit creative, don't they?

I had Rhinoceros ratsnake that struck from the branches and took it straight underwater and ate it there !!

I have mentioned it in this very forum and posted photos .


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[Bogertophis]

I had Rhinoceros ratsnake that struck from the branches and took it straight underwater and ate it there !!

I have mentioned it in this very forum and posted photos .


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

But again, that's not what I was asking. You said he "took it straight underwater..." meaning he struck & did not let go of it. I am asking about snakes that totally drop their prey into the water, losing contact completely, but still manage to find it (visually) & eat it.