Journal
JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL BIOLOGY
Volume 213, Issue 8, Pages 1266-1271Publisher
COMPANY BIOLOGISTS LTD
DOI: 10.1242/jeb.033662
Keywords
specific dynamic action; stable isotope ratio analysis; sit-and-wait foraging snake
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Digestion, absorption and assimilation of the meal are active processes that require start-up energy before the energy contained in a meal can be utilized. The energetic costs associated with feeding (specific dynamic action, SDA) are high in sit-and-wait foraging snakes that tolerate long fasting periods. We used C-13-labelled prey to partition between endogenous energy sources (i.e. snakes own resources) and exogenous energy sources (i.e. prey). A linear mixing model was then applied to determine the portion of C-13 originating from the different sources. The snakes showed a normal and typical postprandial response. By four hours after feeding, the delta C-13-values indicated fuel switching from endogenous to exogenous. From then on, fuel mixing continuously increased until, at 20 h after feeding, 75% of fuel was exogenous. Resource partitioning showed that throughout SDA, the amount of exogenous energy increased to similar to 60% of SDA, which was equivalent to similar to 4.5% of the energy contained in a meal.
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