tyflier
[Insert Witty Commentary]
I don't know, Jeff...saying that an adult male black ratsnake shows semi-arboreal tendencies from time to time, and calling black ratsnakes arboreal or semi-arboreal is different.
Yes...I see the tendency for the species to climb. I also see it in coachwhips whom seem to prefer the trees to the ground in the heat of the summer. But they are not arboreal species. They are not designed for life in the trees, and neither are black ratsnakes.
Like I said to David...having the ability to climb, and occasionally USING that ability does not make you arboreal. It makes you opportunistic.
Perhaps I am wrong, but I was always under the impression that in order for a snake to be considered arboreal or semi-arboreal, these tree-tendencies need to fit across the board, not just apply to small cross-sections of their adult population.
Arboreal snakes are arboreal from birth(or hatching), and are well designed and are equipped to live out there entire lives without ever touching the ground. Semi-arboreal snakes spend a strong percentage of their lives in the trees. I don't think black ratsnakes fit either description...
Yes...I see the tendency for the species to climb. I also see it in coachwhips whom seem to prefer the trees to the ground in the heat of the summer. But they are not arboreal species. They are not designed for life in the trees, and neither are black ratsnakes.
Like I said to David...having the ability to climb, and occasionally USING that ability does not make you arboreal. It makes you opportunistic.
Perhaps I am wrong, but I was always under the impression that in order for a snake to be considered arboreal or semi-arboreal, these tree-tendencies need to fit across the board, not just apply to small cross-sections of their adult population.
Arboreal snakes are arboreal from birth(or hatching), and are well designed and are equipped to live out there entire lives without ever touching the ground. Semi-arboreal snakes spend a strong percentage of their lives in the trees. I don't think black ratsnakes fit either description...
