You might want to check anerythristic, charcoal, and caramel in corn snakes. These are three independent mutants. The first two block formation of red pigment, but they seem to do it in different ways. Caramel seems to dilute the red color to yellow color.

The biochemists tell us that the formation of a given pigment is the result of a long biosynthetic pathway, with considerably more than one step. A block or diversion at any of the steps could change what we see. In other words, there is more than one way to skin a cat or prevent yellow/red pigment from forming.

As for anerythristic vs. axanthic, it boils down to which color appears in a normal specimen of the species and is lacking in the mutant specimen. And if you are naming such a mutant but dislike both terms, choose a different name.

Paul Hollander

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