Subtle asymmetries in the snail-eating snake Pareas carinatus (Reptilia: Pareatidae)

The snail-eating snake Pareas carinatus tilts its head and strikes leftward or rightward, successfully preying on both dextral and sinistral snails. Striking direction does not depend on prey size or coiling direction. Neither the time from striking until dropping of the shell nor the number of mandibular retractions during feeding was affected by the snake’s striking direction or by the snail’s coiling direction. Mandibular dentition was only slightly right-handed. Unlike previously studied congeneric species, which are more specialized for feeding on dextral snails, P. carinatus may prey on dextral and sinistral snails with similar efficiency.