Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My eastern indigo layed 15 eggs on saturday, 1 didn't look good 14 looked good, now i'm new at incubating indigo eggs or snake eggs for that matter, i've only had experience with geckos. I'm looking for any advice if anyone would care to help it would be greatly appreciated. I've read and researched just about every post online and still get different people using different temps. I'm at 76 degrees right now, the eggs are in small rubbermaids with 1 1/4 inch hole drilled in each corner with a vermiculite mix 1:1 vermic to water. These containers are on a suspended rack in a huge styro cooler with a heatpad on the bottom, a rubbermaid with water in it on top and a couple opened water bottles in the end of the cooler. The temps are being maintained by a herpstat. Also the eggs are the size of decent sized chicken eggs, is that normal size? I took a pic with a bic lighter beside a few for size comparison. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. The dark spot on the egg to the far left is where there was a small spot of blood, the only spot of blood anywhere when she layed. thanks

Congratulations and well done! I would swith medium from vermiculite to damp perlite. It's not too late. There will be better aeration around entire egg. Less likely for mold to take hold. I had always used vermiculite until this year. Get Robert Bruce to comment on temps. For now keep in mid to high 70's.

Thanks steve, I was kinda hoping you would reply, I kinda thought there would be less chance of mold with vermiculite but i'm gonna put half the eggs on perlite tomorrow. Now would you raise the temps a bit from 76 degrees? thanks

Yes I would shoot for mid to upper 70's. Robert Bruce shared last spring that towards the end of incubation to elevate temps so that hatchlings have an easier time cutting way out of egg. Get him to share his views again.

Yea I remember seeing that post before I believe, is his still around on this forum I haven't seen anything to recent. thanks again