Is sexual size dimorphism in relative head size correlated with intersexual dietary divergence in West African forest cobras, Naja melanoleuca?

摘要: Sex-biased differences in dietary habits of snakes are often linked to pronounced sexual size dimorphism absolute body or relative head size. We studied the food free-ranging forest cobras (Naja melanoleuca) southern Nigeria find whether any intersexual divergence is present this species, and measured both museum vouchers freeranging specimens present. demonstrated that: (1) sizes increases more rapidly with SVL females than males, a result that, at same length, tended have significantly larger heads; (2) males were nearly identical habits, if we consider prey type; (3) sexes upon relatively little sized preys. It concluded that traditional evolutionary scenarios for explaining niche hardly valid case, need look entirely different hypotheses (e.g. preference heads).