The British Herpetological Society

The Herpetological Journal is the Society's prestigious quarterly scientific journal. Articles are listed in Biological Abstracts, Current Awareness in Biological Sciences,Current Contents, Science Citation Index, and Zoological Record.

 ISSN 0268-0130

2021 Impact Factor from Clarivate for the Herpetological Journal is 1.194, an increase of 0.332 from 2020.


pdf 01. The diet of the four lined snake (Elaphe quatuorlineata) in Mediterranean central Italy

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pp.1-5

Authors: Dario Capizzi And Luca Luiselli

Abstract: The feeding habits of the four-lined snake (Elaphe quatuorlineata) were studied in a hilly, Mediterranean locality in central Italy (Tolfa mountains, province of Rome). The adult prey consisted exclusively of rodents (about 77% of the diet) and birds (including nestlings and eggs, about 23% of the diet). Birds represented the main part of the diet during spring-time (April, May and June), whilst rodents accounted for I 00% of the diet from July to November. The juveniles were found to prey exclusively on lacertid lizards. There was a significantly positive correlation between prey mass and predator mass, but the snakes tended to prey on organisms of small size in relation to themselves. Some general remarks on the snake assemblages of the Tolfa mountains are also presented.

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IMPORTANT NOTE - JUNE 2020

Please note that as from Volume 31 Number 1 (January 2021) on, the Herpetological Journal will be available as an online publication only - the last print edition will be Volume 30 Number 4.   

Aligning with this change, it is now no longer possible to purchase a subscription that includes a print copy of the HJ.  All members who have existing HJ print subscriptions that remain active as at end June 2020 will receive the full four 2020 print editions.  New subscribers or renewals after this time will only have option to subscribe to the online only subscription package.  Subscription pricing has been amended to reflect the content changes.