Reptile & Amphibian Forums

These black snakes look a lot like boomers, in fact I think Dr. Wuster has posted a head shot comparison picture before and the differences were slight as I recall.

In light of BGF's paper, no I'm wondering about this species.

I have asked the same question a few times.

I posted a while back on the speed with which T. jacksonii kill mice, however they have an incredibly powerful bite, I strongly suspect that the mice died primarily from suffocation. I have seen far faster deaths to mice from the bite of Ahaetula prasina, which was purely death from the venom (could see the snake working those fangs) and they are considered harmless.

I have also an account from a fellow Thrasops enthusiast, who has had many Thrasops bites and noted nothing more than mild tingling (that was from a feeding bite).

Bryan maybe you could put these on the list to test.

Cheers Mark

We actually went to great lengths to get a few specimens but they were in the box that the airline froze (along with the Boiga blandingii and others including mambas).

In anycase, based upon the anecdotes I have heard independently from different keepers, they certainly seem to smack their prey quite hard. This is enough to at least raise some sensible eyebrows.

Cheers
BGF

Hi BGF,

Did you take that Airline's number? What a shame to destroy thru utter incompetence, or does that happen often, such interesting and some valuable serpents!

Cheers,

Derek K.

This was utter incompetence in the airline routing a live animal flight through Alaska in December (on its way to Singapore via Taipei), having them in a cargo hold that had to be opened in Alaska for an extended period. I was crushed.

Cheers
BGF

Best to read about these things before you buy. That is the biggest problem that is out there. Too many invest a lot in the most unusual or beautiful specimens...and far too few are willing to invest in a proper library or research. there are far too many variables in this thing...from snake to keeper, from venom to willingness to use. biology is NOT AN EXACT SCIENCE. Use common sense and you will get by ok... Otherwise it can turn into a witch hunt... Frank

For the record. I keep Thrasops. Mine at least seems quite agreeable in personality...except to his food.Frank

Mine are the same, except the female views everything as food!

Cheers Mark

Does that mean you have at least a pair of them?

If so, have you been able to get them to breed?

I have 2.1, a w/c pair and a subadult captive hatched male.

I have witnessed a few matings in the past few weeks but am not too confident of anything coming from it. I have been trying to get some weight on the male and have done nothing in the way of cycling.

There does seem to be a shortage of males for some reason. I made a trip to an importer in Paris (France) to obtain an adult male. The male had died before I got there but he had around two hundred c/f?? hatchlings, there were only four males amongs them!! I had three of them but lost two within a fortnight (that's two weeks, one of our Brit terms).

I did have 1.2 c/b adults as well but they were very old, 16 years and died from natural causes.

Not sure why this should be. I was fortunate to obtain male from another importer, he had ordered several T. jacksonii, he obtained 1 T. jacksonii some Philothamnus 2 Green "Thrasops" possibly aethiopisa and a few Boomers..... Luckily for me the jacksonii was male. has taken a cople of years for it to settle in, possibly why I am now seeing mating activity.

Will post details if anything happens.

Cheers Mark