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27: Zoologist Ash Campbell, Kleptoparasitism, and Australia's Best Animal

Let's Learn Everything!

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Reptile Kleptoparasitism

When garter snakes emerge from hibernation, females produce a skin lipid that attracts male snakes and the males will swarm around her trying to mate. A study in 2001 by Shina Dao found that when this swarming happens, the one that's mimicking the female, actually warms the female faster than if he was just basking on his own. And so once the male warms up, he's no longer attractive to other males - another example of kleptoparasitism.

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