Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Somewhat new to the forums as I'm a Canadian and do most of my posting via a Canadian forum, but I've had a some good feedback and convo's with some of the other Asian Rat enthusiasts, so I thought I should contribute!
This male was produced by Matt Lackemeyer, great guy, and I really like the thicker striping rather than the thin.
Enjoy!
Ryan

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Geckos and colubrids
Coxi * Laticincta * Mandarina * Rhynchophis

This is the female, with thinner striping. Also produced by Matt.

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Geckos and colubrids
Coxi * Laticincta * Mandarina * Rhynchophis

Great looking bamboo rats Ryan. Matt is a great guy. He has some extremely interesting snakes and is a pleasure to work with.
Here's one of his mandarins

I see from your post you are working with laticincta. That is a really beautiful subspecies. Please post photos when you have them.

Best regards
John

Dang! How many Mandarin ratsnakes do you have, John?

Bert

Did you pick up the 1.3 that he had for sale on KS? He produced some really nice Mandarins this year. But that mandarin is gorgeous too, so I suppose that's one of them? Like I said to you before, nice clean patterns.
Ryan
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Geckos and colubrids
Coxi * Laticincta * Mandarina * Rhynchophis

John,
Really poor picture and I could only manage a quick shot of the male, but here he is. He's an '05 hatchling, so I missed out on the bright orange bands. Don't mind the sticker in the background. Skiing and reptiles are my passions, and I got that sticker from a friend for Head skis.
Ryan

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Geckos and colubrids
Coxi * Laticincta * Mandarina * Rhynchophis

Ryan,

How is the disposition of your Broad-Banded Red Bamboo ratsnakes (O. p. laticinctus)? I have a male from 2006 and it goes completely berserk whenever I'm trying to work with it. It's nearly impossible to hold the snake (that is, without getting bitten) and it constantly tries to escape out of the box in wich I'm keeping it whenever I have opened the box and removed the hide in order to inspect the snake. I'm wondering wether the snake will keep this behaviour or that it will become more calm.

Regards,

Bert Grit
The Netherlands

Bert,
I initially thought that they would be exactly like my coxi in behaviour, but my pair is much like your male. I can open up the cage, and even open a hide spot, with little reaction but if I handle them, they get pretty feisty and constantly strike. While taking that picture, I was waiting to get bitten, but nothing happened, he was quite calm. Weird!
Ryan
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Geckos and colubrids
Coxi * Laticincta * Mandarina * Rhynchophis

Thank you for answering my question, Ryan. So it looks like I will be stuck with a little spawn from hell, huh? Oh well, I needed to learn working with aggressive snakes eventually someday.

Regards,

Bert

hey guys, our Latis definitely have their moments : )

like Ryan said, sometimes they will chill out, but other times they are just all over the place, constantly moving : )
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robyn@proexotics.com

Pro Exotics Reptiles

Robyn,
So true. I still have a lot to figure out with not only this species but also the other species in the genus. My yearling coxi are calm as frequently handled corns,yet my new hatchlings are mean little buggers.
Big thanks for hooking me up with these Robyn!
Ryan
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Geckos and colubrids
Coxi * Laticincta * Mandarina * Rhynchophis

A couple of my coxi will actually shoot out of the cage to bite. Can't tell if it's defensive, or their feeding response to movement. They're like safe Mambas.

Jeff

That was one of two very interesting female mandarins that Matt sent me last year (thanks again Matt). They're currently thriving. I'm expecting some fun when I breed them in a few years.

John

>>Did you pick up the 1.3 that he had for sale on KS? He produced some really nice Mandarins this year. But that mandarin is gorgeous too, so I suppose that's one of them? Like I said to you before, nice clean patterns.
>>Ryan
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>>Geckos and colubrids
>>Coxi * Laticincta * Mandarina * Rhynchophis

(6.8). One south china, two vietnamese and eleven sichuan type. But I may finally have enough!

>>Dang! How many Mandarin ratsnakes do you have, John?
>>
>>Bert

Impressive collection John! What else do you keep?
Ryan
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Geckos and colubrids
Coxi * Laticincta * Mandarina * Rhynchophis

gloydi

vulpina

schrencki

longissima

subocularis

lindheimeri

But mostly mandarins.

Regards
John

John,

How do you like the Russian (a.k.a. Amur) ratsnakes? I had a pair once and the female was shy and went off-feed for a long time, but the male was fantastic. He was the exact opposite: he fed great and every time I opened the cage he would approach me; not to take a strike at me, but to crawl onto my hands! I've never witnessed such behaviour in any other snake. I also think that black Russian ratsnakes with a yellow chin are very pretty.

Regards,

Bert

Interesting, hardy and attractive in an understated way. They're not small and they like to eat alot but no more than obsoleta for instance. A very good asian for even a beginner. And yes, the more yellow, the better.

Best regards
John

>>How do you like the Russian (a.k.a. Amur) ratsnakes? I had a pair once and the female was shy and went off-feed for a long time, but the male was fantastic. He was the exact opposite: he fed great and every time I opened the cage he would approach me; not to take a strike at me, but to crawl onto my hands! I've never witnessed such behaviour in any other snake. I also think that black Russian ratsnakes with a yellow chin are very pretty.
>>
>>Regards,
>>
>>Bert

John,

I really like the idea of working with a large group of snakes of the same species. This way you can have a better representation of the natural variability in both appearance and behaviour within the same species. My future plans are to focus on keeping a small number of different species, but to have 4.4 animals from every species, all different bloodlines, but from the same locality. Unfortunately, right now I don't have the funds nor the space to make this happen (I'm a student and I live with my parents along with my two brothers and one of my sisters). Therefore, I'm now settling for one pair of Mandarin ratsnakes and one pair of Broad-Banded Red Bamboo ratsnakes.

Regards,

Bert

No rush necessary Bert. The best projects are the ones that are carefully planned and kept within available resources.

Best regards
John

>>John,
>>
>>I really like the idea of working with a large group of snakes of the same species. This way you can have a better representation of the natural variability in both appearance and behaviour within the same species. My future plans are to focus on keeping a small number of different species, but to have 4.4 animals from every species, all different bloodlines, but from the same locality. Unfortunately, right now I don't have the funds nor the space to make this happen (I'm a student and I live with my parents along with my two brothers and one of my sisters). Therefore, I'm now settling for one pair of Mandarin ratsnakes and one pair of Broad-Banded Red Bamboo ratsnakes.
>>
>>Regards,
>>
>>Bert