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1 March 2005 Eastern Bluebird Provisions Nestlings with Flat-headed Snake
Shelby C. Braman, Darrell W. Pogue
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Abstract

There are few published reports of Eastern Bluebirds (Sialia sialis) taking vertebrate prey or provisioning their young with vertebrates. We report finding a dead flat-headed snake (Tantilla gracilis) in an Eastern Bluebird nest. Flat-headed snakes feed primarily on soft-bodied invertebrates; thus, it is unlikely that the snake was attempting to depredate the bluebird nestlings. Moreover, flat-headed snakes are fossorial and rarely occur in open habitats. Therefore, the snake was most likely captured by one of the adult bluebirds and brought to the nestlings as a food item.

Shelby C. Braman and Darrell W. Pogue "Eastern Bluebird Provisions Nestlings with Flat-headed Snake," The Wilson Bulletin 117(1), 100-101, (1 March 2005). https://doi.org/10.1676/03-115
Received: 7 November 2003; Accepted: 1 November 2004; Published: 1 March 2005
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