Posted by:
Tony D
at Thu Jun 17 09:36:33 2004 [ Email Message ] [ Show All Posts by Tony D ]
Good questions but unfortunately no really good answers. I am an advocate of limiting inbreeding. Notice I said limiting not eliminating. Even in the natural state some inbreeding occurs. Evolution would not work without it.
I specialize in a small form of North American milk and can tell you that I’ve had great success with a local line that is inbred to the max while at the same time experiencing difficulty with another inbred local line of the same form. Sometimes all other things being equal you decide out breeding is the appropriate course. Other times you might conclude that some other factor was in play. Given proper day-to-day care and ignoring the out breeding thing, the most common causes of poor fertility IMHO are:
Breeder age – we often associate maturity with size alone. I can only site this anecdotally, but an 18 month old female that is 22” long is more likely to have reduced fecundity than a snake of the same size that is in its third of fourth year.
Condition – IMHO there is an optimal range for breeders. Too fat is just as bad as too thin.
Hibernation – Some forms require longer and colder hibernation cycles and failure to provide this often has negative effects.
Timing – Some forms ovulate right out of hibernation. If you do the classic thing and wait till the after the first shed to introduce the male you can miss a very narrow window of opportunity. Seem to remember this being documented in speckled kings.
The best way to learn what is affecting poor fecundity is to keep good records and compare notes with other breeder. Even then without testing you still just have antidotal evidence. In the end all we can do is stick with what works.
As for morphs and fertility, I’m unaware of a single case where poor fecundity is directly associated with a morph. IMHO, when there is an indication of poor breeding performance it can usually be attributed to what I call the opportunity factor. This is where we tend to feel the need to produce while the price is still high. As a result we power feed and end up trying to breed animals that are too young, over conditioned and haven’t been adequately cycled. Not to say that this can’t be done its just that we shouldn’t be surprised when things don’t go as well as we’d planned.
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RE: Facts or Myths Concerning Breeding Snakes in Captivity, please give this a look - Tony D, Thu Jun 17 09:36:33 2004