1. The structure, composition, and shape of teeth have been related to
dietary specialization in many vertebrate species, except snakes. Yet,
snakes have diverse dietary habits that may impact the shape of their
teeth. We hypothesize that prey properties, such as hardness and shape,
as well as feeding behavior, such as aquatic or arboreal predation, or
holding vigorous prey, impose constraints on the evolution of tooth
shape in snakes. 2. We compared the morphology of the dentary teeth of
63 species that cover the phylogenetic and dietary diversity of snakes,
using 3D geometric morphometrics and linear measurements. 3. Our results
show that prey hardness, foraging substrate and the main mechanical
challenge are important drivers of tooth shape, size, and curvature. 4.
Overall, long, slender, curved teeth with a thin layer of hard tissue
are observed in species that need to maintain a grip on their prey.
Short, stout, less curved teeth are associated with species that undergo
high or repeated loads. 5. Our study demonstrates the diversity of tooth
morphology in snakes and the need to investigate its underlying
functional implications to better understand the evolution of teeth in
vertebrates.