Behavior
The common name sidewinder is an allusion to its unusual form of locomotion, which is thought to give it traction on windblown desert sand, but this peculiar locomotor specialization is used on any substrate that the sidewinder can move over rapidly. As its body progresses over loose sand, it forms a letter-J shaped impression, with the tip of the hook pointing in the direction of travel. Sidewinding is also the primary mode of locomotion in other desert sand dwellers, such as the horned adder (Bitis caudalis) and Peringuey's adder (Bitis peringueyi), but many other snakes can assume this form of locomotion when on slick substrates (e.g., mud flats).
The species is nocturnal during hot months and diurnal during the cooler months of its activity period, which is roughly from March to November (probably longer in the southern part of its range).
Juvenile Sidewinders use their tails to attract lizard prey (see video: ), a behavior termed "caudal luring". Adult Sidewinders lose this behavior as they make the transition from lizard prey to their primary diet of desert rodents. Sidewinder juveniles appear to mimic both life stages of lepidopterans in their luring motions. Their fast luring motions resemble the fluttering of a moth and their slower tail movements resemble a caterpillar. Both movements have been observed to attract prey lizards.
Neonatal sidewinders engage in a remarkable type of behavioral homeothermy that has not been observed in any other type of snake. Following birth, the neonates mass together in their natal burrow. Most often, gravid females select an East facing, small diameter rodent burrow to birth in. For the first week or so of their lives, neonatal sidewinders literally plug the entrance to this burrow during daylight hours, forming a dynamic multi-individual mass that takes advantage of the hot exterior environment and the cool interior of the burrow to maintain an average aggregate temperature of 32°C (the optimal temperature for shedding). Experiments showed that the dynamic mass of neonates modifies the thermal environment at the burrow entrance such that the young can occupy a location that would ordinarily become lethally hot for an individual neonate (or even an adult). Because of the constant movements of the neonates, the aggregate assumes stable temperature properties reminiscent of a homeothermic organism (i.e., maintains tight temperature tolerance ± 2°C).
Read more about this topic: Crotalus Cerastes
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