Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have noticed more and more motleys being posted for sale and saw the striped or "whip" tail version as well as the ladder tail type. My question to you guys is this...Is this some sort of sub-trait that gets passed on to the offspring or is the tail pattern a flip of a coin on whether being a ladder or whip tail? If I got a whip tail type will all the motleys from that litter be whip tailed? Thanks in advance to all that may reply.
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Strictly Serpents
Monty Montalbo/Niels Berg
619-602-4908

I just produced a litter with quite a few "whip tails" It seems random to me, I have had litters with a bunch and some with almost none, but I would say having a breeder with a whip tail will produce more. One of the motley gods can probably give you a better idea though, I am working of a limited number of clutches. Craig

According to the breeders who make all the Motleys it is random. I think it has a lot to do with what the Motley is bred to personally. I've started to pull from the "perfect" look croud on the Motleys. I like things a little different.

Best advice, pick the pattern you like the most, and hope for the best with babies. (Breeding to a Salmon can assure you wild patterns that don't make sense.)
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http://www.GilbertBoas.com/

I think the polygenic makeup of bloodlines play a significant role in the way single gene mutations are expressed.

From what I've seen, its not random. There are litters that have high consistant high percentages of ladder tail motleys... and there are litters that have consistant high percentages of "whip tail" motleys.

What creates these variations? The polygenic makeup of an individual or the single gene mutation itself?

Look at other single gene mutations without the subjectivity related to pattern aberrancy, albinos for example. What determines what makes a nice albino and what makes a poor one? We've pretty well proven through selective breeding that it is the bloodline, or the polygenic makeup, that determines this. The mutation itself doesnt seem to express itself in variable ways.

I think the same thing happens with pattern mutations... jungles... motleys... etc. Look at jungle litters, some are very aberrant, others are not. These very aberrant ones tend to throw other very aberrant ones. It's the same exact genetic mutation, only a differing bloodline. The mutation along with the polygenic makeup provides a total sum of the visual end result, not just the mutation.

Just a little observation/theory of mine. My knowledge in advanced genetics is slim so take it with a grain of salt.

>>According to the breeders who make all the Motleys it is random. I think it has a lot to do with what the Motley is bred to personally. I've started to pull from the "perfect" look croud on the Motleys. I like things a little different.
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>>Best advice, pick the pattern you like the most, and hope for the best with babies. (Breeding to a Salmon can assure you wild patterns that don't make sense.)
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>>http://www.GilbertBoas.com/
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www.topnotchboas.com

"From what I've seen, its not random. There are litters that have high consistant high percentages of ladder tail motleys... and there are litters that have consistant high percentages of "whip tail" motleys. " - Ryan

I don't think it's random either. I mean, just because my male breeder this year had the cool Whip tail, doesn't mean ALL the Motleys came out with the Whip. In this litter, I had Motleys and Albino Motleys. 2 of the Albino Motleys had nearly PERFECT Ladder Tails...however, NONE of the Motelys had it. Also, one of the Albino Motleys had a perfect Whip Tail. All the non-albino Motleys HAD the "Whip Tail". Some are better whip tails than others. But I'm pretty sure they all came out like that, thanks to the Father. When I get home tonight, I'll try to get a pic of the Father and Post it so you guys can see.

The Father of my recent Albino Motley litter came from An Albino Male bred to a normal Motley Female I bought from Jeremy back in 2000..or was it 2001...forgot now. So, in that litter, there was about a 50/50 mix...whip tails, and ladder tails. I guess it was random at that point, but my thought's are that if you use a bredder that exibits one of the other trait, you have better chances of getting a high consistancy in the offspring.

As far as prefrence, everyone likes something different. I personally love them both. I would have a REAL hard time picking one or the other. They're both bad ass. Oh, and also....the way the babeis come out ofcourse has something to do with the female too...whether she's a motley or not....that's the part I have no idea on the influence (assuming the female normal in pattern).

hope this helps...thanks!
-Alex

BoaRepublic.com

been from the litters of other breeders. Having just bought my first Motley recently.

Even though I didn't produce my own litters I can still look at the results from other breeders, what kind of Motley they used, and what kind of boa they bred it to. You work with the same data no matter if you do it yourself or follow what others have done.

I think the information Ryan and Alex posted clearly explain everything.
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http://www.GilbertBoas.com/

I was letting the original poster know that most breeders feel that it is random.

However if you look at what is being produced in specific litters you will see a trend. I got my Motley from Joe Lydon, in his litter there was a "little of everything" as far as the Motleys go, and many different from last years litter that he produced.

Gray at Allboas.com has nearly perfect patterns in all the Motleys he produces. If it was more random he should have other looks.

The Motleys that Chris Nicholas produces have a distinct look to them that I am sure many have noticed.

Jeff Ronne produces nearly perfect patterns in his.

Look at the Motley breeder chosen to be used by each of these people, then look at the mate chosen for it. The mate may have a circleback pattern, or maybe thin saddles, or maybe large blocky pattern. Each different combination seems to have at least some effect on the resulting babies.

So while you CAN have one Motley of any given look produce every kind of look in one litter, you CAN also control the results.

Both are true, so which is it, both.
I hope this makes more sense, as I didn't mean to confuse things earlier. While to a point the results are random, there are factors that affect them. Still those factors aren't 100% predictable, so instead of picking just any Motley (maybe going for best price) and hopeing to get the look you like. It would be wiser to simply pick the look you like and hope you get more of it. Picking the right mate can help.
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http://www.GilbertBoas.com/

when my motley come out their eggs for you okay