Brian, I am not so sure I totally agree with that. You say:



"there is a strong bond between parents and offspring. A neonate Corucia MUST remain in the Circulus for a minimum of 3 years. Any less than this is tantamount to abuse."



I have always been under the understanding that Corucia OFTEN, but not always, have some maternal involvement with their offspring mostly in the form of protection, and that this involvement is not always exclusively to the mother. I have heard and read reports of other adults that seemed to be protective of babies that were not their own. However, I have seen and heard other reports of the opposite with adults (sometimes even the mother) occasionally killing a baby. I personally think that these situations are most likely brought on by over crowding, or stress. However, Corucia often have very fragile social bonds when kept in groups and it would seem quite possible that the event of a birth of a neonate itself could very well be stressful enough to the other colony members to actually be the causal factor of that same baby's death. It could also be theorized that a birth might also be responsible for some of the situations where all havoc breaks out in a colony that was previously harmonious. As far as I know, there really are not any hard fast rules in regard to social interaction and Corucia except to expect unexpected when you least expect it (try to say that really fast)). I was also curious as to where you came up with 3 years in the circulus (I assume that that is a fancy word for group, family, or colony). I have seen them do very well when taken away at much earlier ages. I have seen these same skinks grow up to breed and produce healthy babies themselves. In my opinion this protective behavior is something that Corucia have evolved to do, and it is exactly that; a form of protection from predators that helps the species to survive, much like a python that protects her eggs. Are you to say that there is more to it than that? Is there some emotional envelopment involved? Who knows, maybe. I certainly think that it would be a big stretch to make such a claim. Is it really so bad in captivity to raise up a baby without its parents? What does it need protection from? Is it any different that removing those python eggs to incubate them artificially? How about when we take baby gators away from their mothers. Being in South Florida, I am sure you know that baby crocodilians receive a great deal of maternal care. With Alligators, this care can last for up to 3 years with reports of up to 4 years, yet babies are readily available, and seem to do very well as long as they end up in the right with the right care. How are Corucia different in that respect? I realize you are very passionate about Corucia, but this seems a tiny bit extreme. Just a few thoughts forn the devil's advocate.

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