Reptile & Amphibian Forums

well i think i might be buying some red milks very soon and have a few questions.
i read that the average adult length is 28" is this true ?or do they get larger or stay smaller?
are they sexually dimorphic? how can you tell otherwise( i know probe them).
are they canniballistic?
do they integrade naturally with any other species?
do you use the same basic corn/milk breeding procedures and temps?
if you have any other useful info on these snakes such as behavior or breeding tips pleas share them with me
thank you very much
adam
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0.1.0 normal corn het hypo,anery
1.0.0 snow corn het hypo,anery,amel
1.0.0 amel corn unknown hets(4ft 8inch long)
1.0 sinacorn
0.0.2 snapping turtles
0.0.1 3 lined mud turtle
1.1 kenyan sand boas

Syspila are one of the smaller milks, 28" seems about average. They are not sexaully dimorphic and I would recomend keeping them seperate (although some folks have great luck keeping Lampropeltis communally).
Syspila does not hybridize with other geographically sympatric species of Lampropeltis (calligaster and getula) in the wild, but does intergrage with other subspecies of milksnake where their ranges abut. All subspecies of milksnake (Lampropeltis triangulum) intergrade with all other adjacent subspecies of triangulum over relatively broad zones at the periphery of their ranges. This helps define them as belonging to the same species (according to the biological species concept, anyway). Syspila are great and Jeff H. has NICE animals.
-Cole

ps: Jeff,
The syspila Dell and I got from you are doing awesome!

Cole hit the nail squarely and I just want to add that if you choose to breed the buggers, hatchlings are small and usually require force feeding for some months before they accept thawed pink heads (yes, they're too small for whole pinks).
If this is your first venture into N.A. milks, be aware that adults will stop feeding in the fall (even August) and must be in prime condition (fat)to be healthy when coming out of the cooler in March or so. They'll require a 3-4 month cooling period which begins when they're exposed to temps below 60 or so.
If you're doing the math, we see now that our adult NA milks are active and feeding only 5-7 months every year. I think a lot of people keeping these smaller milks are caught by suprise when their snakes refuse to feed so early in year and are not really fit for the duration of the cooling period.
The hatchlings seem to be unaffected by the seasons and remain very active feeders year round.
As always, avoid wc animals, there's plenty of legally acquired stock (from the 80s even) to provide hatchlings. Jeff

I don't know if you've talked to Dell lately (he's been out of town a lot) but we finally got some pics of some of our MT multistrata. You're right, baby NA milks are a pain, but well worth it! How's the hunt for Central American milks going?
-Cole

That Syspila still makes me tingle whenever I look at him. He is truly amazing!
Poor Dell, he dove into the most obnoxious snakes last year (I warned him about Alterna but nooooo) but he's passionate and has (like me) unholy miserable long winters to focus on hatchlings.
The search for tropical Triangulum continues. I plan to attempt to get Abnorma out of Guatemala (legally)this year, some stuff out of Costa Rica (legally) this year and I flat don't know how to get anything out of Mexico (legally or otherwise). They found my tunnel before I could get any Dixoni or Smithi out!
Note to Nat'l Security people: the above reference to "the tunnel" is obviously meant in humor, I had nothing to do with it.
Drop me a line Cole, like to hear what you're hoping to hatch this season. Jeff Jis97@aol.com