pyromaniac made a good point about washing your hands before handling.

i see you also used a mixed medium of vermiculite and peat, both are good for holding moisture. trouble is moisture contributes to fungal growth. also when packed in media, air and water compete for the same space, just like they would in soil. too much of one and not enough of the other can lead to the death of the embryo by suffocation/fungus (too much water) or dessication (too dry, not enough water.)

FR has an excellent term for what it is that eggs need to incubate- dry moisture. basically having a humid environment without having standing water or a saturated medium in contact with the egg. One way i tried to accomplish this was to use straight peat fiber, like you have. I would saturate it, then squeeze every drop of water out of it that i could. I would then pack the eggs with this material and place them into an incubating container either with or without ventilation holes, and with a lid. no standing water, plenty of space for gases to circulate.regulate the temps and pop the lid occasionally, maybe more frequently toward the end of incubation so more oxygen can get in.

the next step which i never got to, which the gtp guys and maybe other python breeders do, is to use media free incubation. maybe not justifiable to use on low end species but it really defines what is actually needed to incubate eggs. it got me thinking as to why gtp's and retics, etc coil around their eggs, since they don't dig nests... sure maybe they alter the temps some, but they can certainly control gas and water exchange with their coils. MERELY a hypothesis.

fire away!

peace
daveb
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alcohol, tobacco and firearms should be a convenience store, not a government agency

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