Ankara: Scientists studying Eurasian scops owls in central Türkiye have uncovered an extraordinary relationship between the small birds and live worm snakes found inside their nests.
Across six breeding seasons, researchers inspected 109 owl nests and discovered live Xerotyphlops vermicularis, commonly known as worm snakes, in 44% of them. The snakes appeared only in nests occupied by Eurasian scops owls, suggesting that the birds were carrying them into the nests alive.
The snakes may be helping the chicks
The tiny, burrowing snakes feed on ants, fly larvae and other small invertebrates. Researchers found them moving both through and on the nesting material, raising the possibility that they remove insects that could disturb or compete with the developing chicks.
The most striking finding involved chick survival. While there was no significant difference in clutch or brood size between nests with and without snakes, 61% of hatched young in snake-containing nests eventually fledged, compared with just 29% in nests without snakes.
However, scientists caution that the figures do not yet prove that the snakes directly caused the higher survival rate.
Why are the owls carrying snakes?
The reason for this unusual behaviour remains a mystery. The snakes could benefit from the warm, food-rich environment of an owl nest, while the owls may gain indirectly from having insects removed.
Researchers say the relationship could represent a form of mutualism, but it could also result from misdirected predation or another ecological interaction. More research will be needed to establish exactly what is happening.
The discovery adds to growing evidence of unusual interactions between birds and blind snakes in different parts of the world, showing that nature can create partnerships in the most unexpected places.