I think that very well might happen a very good portion of the time, and it would depend on many different things. Depending on the specific mutation(s) and strains, chromatophores can either produce tyrosine that is then converted to tyrosinase without producing ANY melanin whatsoever (true lavender/t-plus). And these same pigment cells can also allow varying amounts of tyrosinase to leach into the melanocyte and synthesize into melanin (also called either lavender, hypo, or t-plus).



In other words, the broad term "hypomelanism" is a general visual "look" they display, but the term "tyrosinase-positive" is a very specific cause of the look. It can be present in pure form only (lavender/light purple-ish enzyme), or it can be allowed to mix to varying degrees within the melanocytes giving very different visual looks depending on these amounts that are allowed to synthesize. And again, there can be many different variables and causes within the cells themselves that prevent the actual melanin production, and/or tyrosinase production. Each variable could also be a totally different gene, or some could be the same gene but also vary a bit for different reasons.



If you think about it, certain strains of "lavender" can be either a vast reduction in the NUMBER of melanocytes that have zero to slight amounts of melanin production, but the cells still produce tyrosinase which would display a lighter look to the eye due to it's sparser-spaced pigment cells in the dermal layer, or they can have the typical, normal number of these pigment cells, only they don't function normally, ALSO giving very different visual looks.



I have also seen some extreme macro photos of some "mega" hypo Hondo's scales compared to several normal and other typical hypos and the sparse-spaced darker blotching of their scales when you back up and see it from a norma distance is extremely interesting too. Look at the difference of how very dark the so-called "t-plus/lavender" Speckled king (L.g.holbrooki) is compared to many other lavender/t-plus snakes in the hobby. It is very similar looking to the t-plus nelsoni, rather than say a light purple-ish colored "hypo" temporalis. Those are likely purer forms of tyrosinase-pos. animals that do produce tyrosinase but no (or very little) actual melanin.



All I really know is that the more I have researched into all these different variables on how pigment cells can function (or misfunction), the more unsure I am of exactly what is really going on inside these things..LOL!. All most any of us can ever do is call things by what we see visually, not by what is really actually going on. So I guess what I am saying is that sometimes it can be totally masked by an amel gene, and sometimes maybe it doesn't, or not fully....*shrug*..







~Doug
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"



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