What specialized sensory structures do Yarara rely on to locate warm-blooded prey?
Answer
Specialized heat-sensing pits
Yarara, being pit vipers within the genus Bothrops, possess highly specialized sensory organs crucial for their predatory success, especially when targeting warm-blooded animals. These organs are their specialized heat-sensing pits. These pits allow the snakes to detect minute thermal gradients emitted by endotherms, enabling them to accurately locate and strike warm, actively moving prey even in complete darkness. This reliance on thermoreception is a key adaptation that separates them from predators relying solely on sight or chemical cues for the final strike.
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