Miller Canyon resident and naturalist Tom Beatty, Jr., shot a sequence of eight photos of a Sonoran Mountain Kingsnake (Lampropeltis pyromelana) as it was attacking the nest of a Black-chinned Hummingbird (Archilochus alexandri). The nest was located about ten feet up in an oak tree at ca. 6000 ft. elevation.

Presumably while devouring the eggs/chicks in the nest (usually two), the snake got its teeth entangled in the very flexible nest material (plant fibers, animal hair, spider webs, usually covered with lichens, etc.) and ended up swallowing a large portion of the nest itself.




Photos


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Tom Lott
Thornscrub

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