Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hey all. Sorry I haven't been real active lately. I just ended my first season as head coach of the swim team I've been working for for the last 8 years and it was taking up a lot of time. Not only did I need to learn the ropes and responsibilities of head coach, but our team was responsible for hosting the championship meet. Talk about trial by fire. Anyway, we pulled it off and it was a really great season. The school year is winding down and my teaching job is keeping me busy as well. I could get so much done if it wasn't for that pesky work thing.

It looks like I've missed tons of great stuff here on the forum (and a hypomel discussion no less!). You all have some great animals in your collection. Jeff, those Isla Marajos are so deep. Joe, Hypo or not, that is an outstanding male. Nice rescue. I think you beat me to that animal by about an hour. Jlogan and chrindels, those are some nice babies. Lots of definition on the 06's. Linda, I still think that TF baby is carrying something special in the DNA. I see a bright future for that animal. Dave, I have to say that Daisey is my favorite. Although you have such a varied collection that I'm sure my favorite could change on any given day. I can't wait to see what those holdback males turn into.

I haven't had time to put together too many new pics but here are a few from my collection. Enjoy!

This is Angel. She's the meanest BRB I've ever encountered.

This is Ruby and Hypomelvin hanging out.

This is Sherman and Blazing Saddles getting cozy. This is a very special pairing to me because it is the first time (as far as I know) that two hets from completely unrelated females are being bred. Keep your fingers crossed.

This is Hypomadre. She is an offspring from the original pair of hets that started the hypomelanistic line.

This is Hypomelony. She is the product of a hypo x hypo cross I did in 2005. This pic is unaltered and taken without a flash. I really wanted to try and capture her cantaloupe coloration.

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Mike Lockwood
www.tooscaley.com

>>Hey all. Sorry I haven't been real active lately. I just ended my first season as head coach of the swim team I've been working for for the last 8 years and it was taking up a lot of time. Not only did I need to learn the ropes and responsibilities of head coach, but our team was responsible for hosting the championship meet. Talk about trial by fire. Anyway, we pulled it off and it was a really great season. The school year is winding down and my teaching job is keeping me busy as well. I could get so much done if it wasn't for that pesky work thing.
>>
>>It looks like I've missed tons of great stuff here on the forum (and a hypomel discussion no less!). You all have some great animals in your collection. Jeff, those Isla Marajos are so deep. Joe, Hypo or not, that is an outstanding male. Nice rescue. I think you beat me to that animal by about an hour. Jlogan and chrindels, those are some nice babies. Lots of definition on the 06's. Linda, I still think that TF baby is carrying something special in the DNA. I see a bright future for that animal. Dave, I have to say that Daisey is my favorite. Although you have such a varied collection that I'm sure my favorite could change on any given day. I can't wait to see what those holdback males turn into.
>>
>>I haven't had time to put together too many new pics but here are a few from my collection. Enjoy!
>>
>>This is Angel. She's the meanest BRB I've ever encountered.
>>
>>
>>This is Ruby and Hypomelvin hanging out.
>>
>>
>>This is Sherman and Blazing Saddles getting cozy. This is a very special pairing to me because it is the first time (as far as I know) that two hets from completely unrelated females are being bred. Keep your fingers crossed.
>>
>>
>>This is Hypomadre. She is an offspring from the original pair of hets that started the hypomelanistic line.
>>
>>
>>This is Hypomelony. She is the product of a hypo x hypo cross I did in 2005. This pic is unaltered and taken without a flash. I really wanted to try and capture her cantaloupe coloration.
>>
>>-----
>>Mike Lockwood
>>www.tooscaley.com

There you are, we missed you and your Hypos last Monday. Great pics as usual.

Question on the "missed hypo thread" I and others thought it might not be a hypo as it was so yellow with sharp, dark outlines. All my hypo's are more orange with muted , soft outlines. I see from your pics you have a couple that look quite yellow but also with soft, muted outlines. What's your opinion on the other....hypo or yellow phase?
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Thanks,

Dave "Rainbows-R-Us"

0.1 Wife (WC)
0.2 kids (CBB)
2.7 Brazilian Rainbow Boa (adult breeders)
2.5 Brazilian Rainbow Boa (sub-adult from 2004)
4.8 Brazilian Rainbow Boa (sub-adult from 2005)
2.1 Hypomelanistic BRB
0.1 Het for Hypomelanistic BRB
0.1 BCI "Elvira" normal from 1989
1.0 BCI Albino / het-anery
0.1 BCI Salmon / het-albino
0.1 BCI Anery / het-albino
0.1 BCI Salmon (possible super)
1.0 BCI Albino het stripe
1.0 BCI Salmon
0.1 BCI Ghost
0.1 BCI Super salmon, possible jungle
1.0 BCI Salmon, possible jungle
0.1 BCI Super Ghost

lots.lots.lots feeder mice and rats

It's hard to have an opinion yet other than "pretty snake". I think the owner of the animal is on the right track. Breed it to a female and then cross the offspring. See if there is an inheritance pattern. If it is a "proven morph", the next step should be to cross a purebred animal from that line with one of my hypos. We'll either get hypos, double-hets, or something new.

Rather than call it a "Hypo", it looks like it may be an extreme orange BRB. The question then becomes, "What causes some BRB's to be deep red (like Jeff's Isla Marajos), and some to be orange (like the Lamar strain)? Maybe the animal is lacking in some carotenoid pigment.

As for my animals, there is some variation within the adults and the babies. We've had this conversation before and I am now of the opinion that it has to do with the variation we see in the "normal" Brazilians. In other words, if we used an Isla Marajo to produce hypos, they would look different from hypos produced using the Lamar strain. I don't want to get too carried away with this but the Ball python breeders seem to have started a good model. They are focusing very carefully on lots of specifis variants and are creating lots of purebred lines. We could do something similar with BRB's. We've isolated "Hypomelanism". Now let's isolate Hypo-Yellow or "Hypo-cantaloupe". I don't think we need to wait for the albino to start producing some really outstanding animals.

The fact is that there are still very few hypos in existance and even fewer with their adult coloration. I'm still in the process of outcrossing and understanding this one gene.

Great discussion. If anyone else has any thoughts, please chime in.
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Mike Lockwood
www.tooscaley.com

Very nice animals!

Hello Mike,
All that talk of swimming makes me want to well.....go swimming. You have super nice Rainbows! I must admit all you folks with these hypos and hets sure make me want one. Maybe when my financial situation is better I can finally get one (or 2). I had better stick with cages, thermostats, PRB's and Hog Isle's for now.
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