What Does an Eastern Worm Snake Eat?

Diet in the Wild

• Worm snakes are strictly carnivorous and their diet is composed of live animals small enough to fit in their mouths. In some portions of their range, worm snakes feed almost exclusively on earthworms. In other portions they are more opportunistic and will feed on termites, large ants, snails and slugs.

Methods of Hunting

• Worm snakes burrow through the soil in search of subterranean insects and invertebrates. They have hard, pointed tails that they use to help dig through the soil and probe small insect burrows. Worm snakes find their prey using their keen sense of smell. Like all snakes, they often flick their tongues in the air, even underground, to collect small scent particles from their surrounding environment. The tongue passes over a special organ in the roof of the mouth that interprets the scents and helps a worm snake find its prey.

Method of Eating

• Worm snakes swallow all food items in their diet whole. Snakes can unhinge their jaws and swallow prey much larger than their heads. Since a worm snake's diet consists of small invertebrates smaller than the snake, they rarely need to unhinge their jaws to swallow. They do swallow their prey while it is still alive and allow their stomach acids to kill the animals.

Diet in Captivity

• A worm snake's diet in captivity is the same as in the wild and should be composed of soft-bodied invertebrates. Feed worm snakes several earthworms once each week and supplement with slugs or snails that you find near your home. Worm snakes can be difficult to keep in captivity because it is difficult to monitor their diets and see how much they eat at each feeding since they spend all of their time underground.

Interesting Facts

• In addition to helping find the insects that comprise their diet, worm snakes use their sharp, spiny tails as a defense mechanism against potential predators to avoid becoming another animal's meal. When caught, worm snakes use their sharp tails to poke their captors. While the tail is not sharp enough to pierce human skin and the snakes are harmless to humans, the tail is an effective defense against smaller animals, such as birds and mammals.