Besides fish, what type of animal have captive yellow-bellied sea snakes been known to accept?
Answer
Frogs
When the yellow-bellied sea snake is removed from its natural pelagic environment and kept in controlled captive settings, its dietary flexibility becomes observable, although its biological wiring remains focused on fish. While they readily accept dead or cut-up fish, suggesting chemical composition is more vital than prey structure, they have surprisingly been known to accept frogs. This acceptance is purely situational, indicating that their immediate carnivorous instinct can be satisfied by readily available protein when necessary in human care, even though the snake lineage has likely not encountered amphibians as natural prey for millions of years.
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