Gregory Patrick T, Gregory Linda A
Department of Biology, University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia V8W 3N5, Canada.
J Comp Psychol. 2006 Aug;120(3):262-8. doi: 10.1037/0735-7036.120.3.262.
A common response of animals to physical restraint is tonic immobility. The authors observed the behavior of garter snakes, Thamnophis elegans, in the field to determine the frequency of immobility as a response to handling. Most snakes fled after release, but the remainder remained immobile, sometimes on their backs (supination), for up to 10 min. Immobility was seen most often in pregnant snakes, which also were more likely than other snakes not to have moved before capture. Failure to move, either before or after capture, might be a consequence of the limited locomotory ability of gravid snakes. However, the lack of observations of interactions between snakes and their natural predators impedes researchers' understanding of the antipredator value, if any, of tonic immobility.
动物对身体束缚的一种常见反应是强直性静止。作者在野外观察了束带蛇（学名：Thamnophis elegans）的行为，以确定静止不动作为对处理的反应的频率。大多数蛇在被放归后会逃跑，但其余的蛇会保持静止，有时会仰卧，长达10分钟。静止不动在怀孕的蛇中最为常见，而且它们比其他蛇更有可能在被捕前没有移动过。在被捕之前或之后未能移动，可能是怀孕的蛇运动能力有限的结果。然而，缺乏对蛇与其自然捕食者之间相互作用的观察，阻碍了研究人员对强直性静止的反捕食价值（如果有的话）的理解。
