What specialized feature allows Dasypeltis scabra to crack eggs internally?
Answer
Specialized vertebral features that press against the egg when manipulated by throat muscles.
The mechanism by which the Rhombic Egg Eater consumes large bird eggs is unique. After swallowing the egg, the snake maneuvers it down the throat until the skull presses against it. The snake then contracts its throat muscles, causing modified teeth or processes located on its vertebrae to exert pressure against the eggshell, thereby cracking it open internally. Following the ingestion of the yolk and albumen, the snake regurgitates the resulting empty, broken shell fragments. This adaptation allows the snake to consume eggs considerably larger than its own head diameter.
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