Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Has anyone ever noticed small amounts of blood in a female's cage after pairings? Let me first say that I started cooling down Oct. 1st, reaching my min./max. temps. (73F/85F) by the 15th. Introductions began Nov. 1st. The females are all first-time breeders & that whenever a male is first introduced to their cages, the females exhibit quite a bit of jerky movement & tail thrashing/lifting, even some cloacal gaping. This being said, I know they're ready to breed but the males don't show any real interest & I haven't seen any locks, though I know that doesn't mean there weren't. I was just wondering if the blood streaks were a common indicator that breeding has occurred. I had never noticed it with my Burmese but since the copulations were so obvious I never looked for it. Any input is greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Bill Manzon
Regal Evolutions

Hi Bill -

It just occurred to me that a lot of people may never notice what you're seeing simply because the keep their snakes on substrates other than paper.

Anyway,the blood streaks don't mean that the female has copulated, but they strongly indicated that she is very receptive to do so. They sometimes lay down those blood streaks while wagging their tails back and forth. Unless your males are total doofuses, nature should eventually take its course.

It occasionally happens that you'll get a small pool of blood if the female decides to take off before he's disengaged. In that case, you might also see a small amount of seminal fluid. I'm not sure I've ever seen that with a ball python, though.

-Joan

>>Has anyone ever noticed small amounts of blood in a female's cage after pairings? Let me first say that I started cooling down Oct. 1st, reaching my min./max. temps. (73F/85F) by the 15th. Introductions began Nov. 1st. The females are all first-time breeders & that whenever a male is first introduced to their cages, the females exhibit quite a bit of jerky movement & tail thrashing/lifting, even some cloacal gaping. This being said, I know they're ready to breed but the males don't show any real interest & I haven't seen any locks, though I know that doesn't mean there weren't. I was just wondering if the blood streaks were a common indicator that breeding has occurred. I had never noticed it with my Burmese but since the copulations were so obvious I never looked for it. Any input is greatly appreciated. Thanks!
>>
>>Bill Manzon
>>Regal Evolutions