>>One more thing, I'd love to hear about your brumation techniques for the Senticolis. I'd like to work with them one day, when I have a bit more experience.
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>>Matt Kauffman

Hey Matt, sorry for the long response time - just saw this.

Well, I can go into lengthy detail on it, via email, if you want - but basically I tried to emulate Gerold Merker's take on brumation. I cooled them with a warm end, using heat tape, and kept the snake room unheated. This past winter was a bit cooler than usual, for south Texas - but with the usual warm-ups too, which could last a week or more.

I fully warmed them back up during three separate warm spells, and fed them, due to them being very active and slender, racer-like snakes. I would let them digest for two weeks and cool them down again - depending on weather. I really did not expect them to produce fertile eggs with this brumation, and especially since this was the first time for the female, and first time cooling them in captivity as well. The female was a juvenile when I got her, too. The fact that they did is causing me to re-think some of my brumation techniques for some of the Old World rats which have not produced for me yet (situla and bimaculata). Speaking of Leopard Snakes, I'd like to pick your brain about getting eggs from them...

Coldest temps in the snake room were probably in the mid 50's during a brutal (for south Texas) three day freeze. Warmest temps were up to the high 70's. Like I said, I can go into more detail via email, and will have to look at my notes to come up with actual duration of cooling, etc.


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-Toby Brock
Southwestern Center for Herpetological Research

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