Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have heard this rumor that Corn Snakes can catch birds in mid-flight and then eat them. I was wondering if it is true?

Yes, it is possible, however it is not common. True arborials will have two front teeth that stick straight down which are designed to grab birds in mid-flight. Colubrids have angled teeth which are designed to catch slow(er) moving prey and help eat easier.

I was feeding my black rat a few months ago back when he was in a 29 gallon aquarium. He would climb to the top whenever he smelled food defrosting under the light. I grabbed it and dropped in the cage and he caught it mid-drop. Happened a couple times actually, I thought it was pretty cool.

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-Chris

The reason mainstream thought is thought of as a stream is because it's so shallow. -George Carlin

A fool doesn't learn. A smart man learns from his mistakes. A wise man learns from the mistakes of others. Which one are you?

My Website
N. American Rat/Corn snake care sheet I wrote
Information on substrates

Current snakes:
0.1 Licorice Stick Black Rat (Lola)
1.0 Black Rat (Frankie)
0.1 Texas Bairdi (Rosa)
0.1 Blue Beauty (Brunhilde)
1.0 Green Tree Python (Monty)

i have a corn that is part yellow ratsnake or mabye everglades ratsnake(long story). whenever i opened the cage to drop a mouse in it would come to the top of the cage, when i dropped them in it would catch the mouse in mid air almost every time (now i distact it and put the mouse on its climbing log because it would hit the galss when catching the mouse)

I recently saw a picture or video clip of a rat snake that basically lived in a tree right next to a bird feeder. The home owner had taken a picture of the snake. It was so fat it looked like it would bust. Not sure if it caught the birds while in flight but it sure knew where to go to find food. If a rat snake could do, I guess a corn could.

I think I saw Steve irwin doing a show in FL, wherein he "found" a corn setting on the ledge of a cave entrance, trying to snag bats in mid-air. If a corn could snag a bat, I have no doubt that it could grab a bird too.
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Darin Chappell
Hillbilly Herps
PO Box 254
Rogersville, MO 65742

I was snake hunting (hunting as in finding not killing) one night and I came across a yellow rat eating a BAT. So I would assume if a yellow rat could catch a bat it could catch a bird.

Derek

of the corn striking at the bats flying by. . .
I know they like birds. I once fed a freshly killed wild bird to one of my WC cornsnakes (The bird died flying into glass). She ate it with no hesitation.

Zee

I noticed you said you defrost under a light. I usually boil water, and then let the mice sit in the water until they thaw. However, it is messy and the mice get really soggy and nasty and sometimes the snakes don't seem interested. Does thawing under light solve this problem, and how long does it take? What wattage light do you use? Thank you.
Justin

I would think that the mice would cook somewhat in water that hot, even if it was allowed to cool a little before placing the mice in it. I just put my mice in very warm tap water for 15 or 20 minutes. This works for me, and you don't risk cooking the mice! If I were a snake, I wouldn't be very interested in a partially cooked mouse either! Just a thought.

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***** Brandon *****

0.0.1 White's Tree Frog
1.0 Creamsicle Cornsnake
corn_snake_dude@yahoo.com

If you put your snakes in water, you wash away the scent. If you are going to put them in water, put in a ziploc bag first. When I defrost my small rats for my chondro, I have them all vacuum sealed and I just drop it in a pot of really hot tap water and put the stove on 2 (next to lowest setting). On the old stove it was on LOW. 45 minutes later I have a perfectly defrosted rat.

for pinkies and such, it wouldnt take but maybe 5 minutes at the most
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-Chris

The reason mainstream thought is thought of as a stream is because it's so shallow. -George Carlin

A fool doesn't learn. A smart man learns from his mistakes. A wise man learns from the mistakes of others. Which one are you?

My Website
N. American Rat/Corn snake care sheet I wrote
Information on substrates

Current snakes:
0.1 Licorice Stick Black Rat (Lola)
1.0 Black Rat (Frankie)
0.1 Texas Bairdi (Rosa)
0.1 Blue Beauty (Brunhilde)
1.0 Green Tree Python (Monty)

True arboreals don't necessarily hav enlarged anterior dentition, and they don't necessarily eat birds, either. In the rainforest where many of the true arboreals live the rodents are in the trees just as much as the reptiles. Gut contents of Emerald tree Boas form the wild have dispelled the myth that they eat primarily birds. I read it somewhere recently, but search for it and you will find some of this same information. Arboreal colubrids, that I am aware, do not have pronouncedly enlarged "fangs," as a common trait.
I would love to see some still-action photos of a rat snake or corn snake snagging a bird out of the air! That would be so much cooler and more entertaining than the Matrix movies (or anything fictional) to me.
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Jeremy J. Anderson
snakepimp.com
gemstatereptiles.com
Of course it's my opinion, I said it, didn't I?
Breeding season is always just around the corner....JOY!!!

Well, my last post didn't have anything to do with the post that preceded it, after all. As far as the angle of the anterior teeth, I don't know how that breaks down, but it's an interesting thought.
Wouldn't teeth that were posteriorly angled still have an advantage for the purpose of gripping the prey in the initial ensnarement? hmmmm...time to research.
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Jeremy J. Anderson
snakepimp.com
gemstatereptiles.com
Of course it's my opinion, I said it, didn't I?
Breeding season is always just around the corner....JOY!!!

I was at a friend's house last summer and saw a 3 foot black rat intently watching the hummingbirds come to the feeders. I couldn't stay to see if he actually managed to snag a hummingbird, but he definitely looked like he was considering it.

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Lora

i dobt it because i never saw a corn jump or anthing like that

It doesn't have to jump, snakes can strike in a split second. It just climbs a tree and waits for a bird to come flapping along, and when it gets close enough..."BAM" it's done for. They are remarkably fast and smart!
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-Doug Daly