Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Looking at the pics I noticed most prefer NON CA Kings . Is that because your breeders and market prefers NON Ca or your own taste?

I havent bred anything but reading this forum for 3 yrs I have noticed a change. Was just curious.

Thanks

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TomsSnakes.com

Are you saying that most of us do not like cal. kings?? if so a lot of people here have and breed cal kings. what is your point?? please explain a bit more.

Posted by: derekdehaas at Sat Jun 21 09:46:07 2008 [ Report Abuse ] [ Email Message ]

Are you saying that most of us do not like cal. kings?? if so a lot of people here have and breed cal kings. what is your point?? please explain a bit more.

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I recall 3 yrs back they were super popular but now not nearly as much thus was curious why .
In other words most posts and breeders are now non Ca king while 3 yrs back they were the most popular.

If you are referring to the brooksi and speckled pics - there are some exciting things going on morph-wise in those subspecies.

Don't be surprised if in a few years, hyper lavender and ghost lavender etc. Cal Kings suddenly start popping up (kerby produced a lot of multi hets).

But here's some of mine:

(that guy was recently sold)

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I decided my old sig was too big.

Posted by: FunkyRes at Sat Jun 21 10:30:09 2008 [ Report Abuse ] [ Email Message ]

If you are referring to the brooksi and speckled pics - there are some exciting things going on morph-wise in those subspecies.

Don't be surprised if in a few years, hyper lavender and ghost lavender etc. Cal Kings suddenly start popping up (kerby produced a lot of multi hets).

But here's some of mine:

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A friend of mine has one of his not sure what its called as I only know few types think "Ghost" again not sure.
nice snakes you have

I think Funky Res is right about the great variety of morphs available w/ Brooksi, but IMHO, no snake-keepers collection is complete without at least one Cal King. They'll never go out of style.

reako45

They are not my favorite Kings, but I still have to have a few around.
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Diego

Posted by: viborero at Sat Jun 21 11:24:59 2008 [ Report Abuse ] [ Email Message ]

They are not my favorite Kings, but I still have to have a few around.
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Diego
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Is it because they can be nippy ?

I think I can safely answer that question,.......NO!..LOL! it's not because they can be a bit nippy, because others also can be to a certain degree too, but it can really depend on many factors. The manner that it's held, feeding scedule, inherited genetics from parent stock, and last but CERTAINLY not least, the individual....saying that Cal Kings are nippy is a VERY generalized statement that can, or cannot apply,....each animal can be, and are, very different than the next.

I'm sure Diego is just like with many others here, with all the different types there are, some species/subspecies just tend to be more personally favored by each of us.

One thing I can say about many of us that frequent these forums is,....the LAST thing we're really worried about is getting zapped here and there, especially young animals........because this will DEFINITELY happen from time to time when you've been around many hundreds of snakes for decades. It's something that's basically become a way of life, and getting nailed by something that's not really BIG, doesn't really even much raise an eyebrow, those little nips get easily brushed off..

Now for example, when I was "SLAMMED" by a big 14 foot python back about 1984,.....THAT! was a different story altogether!..LOL!......YEEEOOOOOCHHH!!!

~Doug
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"Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open mouth and remove any doubt!"

...you hit it on the head, Doug. Matter of fact, I got rid of my Cal's a year ago because I wanted to concentrate on other projects, but lo and behold - I somehow managed to sneak a pair of Carlsbad Stripers back into my snake room a couple of months ago.

The biting is inconsequential. If you want a snake to fear, try some of the Asian Rat Snakes, like a 9 foot Blue Beauty! With that said, though, it still boils down to individual personalities.
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Diego

n/p
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"Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open mouth and remove any doubt!"

Not really, Lia. I actually enjoy their personalities when they are adults. I just prefer the mountain kings over getula, period.
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Diego

Posted by: reako45 at Sat Jun 21 10:42:46 2008 [ Report Abuse ] [ Email Message ]

I think Funky Res is right about the great variety of morphs available w/ Brooksi, but IMHO, no snake-keepers collection is complete without at least one Cal King. They'll never go out of style.

reako45
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That was what I meant so the new morphs in Brooksi have made them more popular than CA kings ?
Nice desert looking King

I only have two kingsnakes, so I'm not the most experienced. One is a Florida Kingsnake. He's as gentle as they come. But I also have a younger Cali, and yes, he does musk, but not so much anymore with consistent handling. I have to say, I like him just as much as the Floridian. In fact, I named him Braveheart because of his behavior. It's not a problem to me, he's just being a snake!

It's been said in this thread, and it's true, if you handle Kings of any type, sooner or later you're gonna get bit. Just need to expect it and count it as part of the hobby.

BTW - I have several gecko's and I have one that has nailed me on more than one occasion, but I wouldn't trade him for anything.

My .02

There are a LOT of Cal King morphs - but many of them are selectively bred opposed to simple mendel.

I think one of the issues is that Cal Kings were so heavily bred during the 70s and 80s that they are sort of the corn snake of the king world.

Years ago - as in late 80s - normal cal kings were $25 each while normal brooksi were $200 each at the East Bay Vivarium. As such, most people on budgets had cal kings, they were much more affordable.

Now that brooksi etc. are starting to come down in price, a lot of people who have had their share of Cal Kings are getting into some of the other varieties. That's the case with me - I'll always love Cal Kings, and the banded variety, as they are what I remember catching in the field as a kid - but brooksi is something I remember seeing at the vivarium, promising mom I would keep my room clean and mow the lawn, and being told "No, it's too expensive" ($200 was a lot more then than it is now)

The same thing is going to happen to the ball python python market, and may have already started. Everyone and his brother (except for me) has owned a ball python - I suspect carpet pythons, diamond pythons, etc. are soon going to be the next big thing and their breeding is going to increase dramatically over the next few years.
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I decided my old sig was too big.

Sand Boas too - they are very popular right now, it would not surprise me to see Rosy Boas replace them as the dominant small boid in the next few years.
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I decided my old sig was too big.

I just don't care for Cal kings for much of the same reasons I hate Honduran milksnakes. They look pretty but because of their spastic personality crapping all over you and musking. To nervous for me. TRhey are hard to take pictures of to because they move and jerk and just want to bolt away.

But i do want a pair of high band count desert kings. Just one pair
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ÌÏËÙÍ ËÁÂE!

"I have high friends in places."-H.Sherman in some bar

>> "They look pretty but because of their spastic personality crapping all over you and musking. To nervous for me. TRhey are hard to take pictures of to because they move and jerk and just want to bolt away".

Ain't that the truth!..LOL!,.......I will say though, that I have had, and DO have many that are absolute sweethearts when it comes to being held, and will calmly accept handling quite well.

Additionally, I ALSO have some that are absolute FREAKS too!...., many seem to start snapping out of their nervousness around a year of age.

I definitely don't recommend hatchlings or other youngsters to people who want a calm placid "lap-pet"..LOL!, cause THAT ain't gonna happen!.......but I've just gotten so darn used to them over the years, I hardly give their nervousness a second thought anymore. I just accept them for what they are.

One thing about Hondurans, and some other milks too, is the fact that they can make OTHER types of snakes an absolute JOY to hold and be around...hahaha!

As you said, photographing Hondurans can be a real pain sometimes,....but a few certain techniques I've developed seem to work pretty well for me most of the time.

~Doug

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"Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open mouth and remove any doubt!"

There are some locales of cal king I would love to have but living on the east coast makes it a little difficult to get any. These locales are not produced like corns and those that produce them may not have a shipping account so I have to just be content with looking at their pics here.

However I am lucky to be on the east coast because easter kings are my all time fav snakes anyway!!

Funny, I am in the same boat as you, only in reverse. There are some Eastern Kings (South GA & Edisto Islands in particular!) that I'm absolutely crazy about and wish I had more space (the only thing stopping me from getting a pair of those).
As far as favorites go I'm a fickle King (getula) fan. Splendida, californiae, holbrooki, nigra, nigrita, l.g.g, floridana... Whatever King is in front of me is probably my fave @ that moment. In the highways and byways of SoCal most of the time that happens to be L.g. californiae. Herp on.

reako45

I agree with you Ralph, I have kept and bred many of the getula complex, including Cal. Kings, but , and I know it is just a personal thing, my favorites also by far are good old Eastern Chain Kings. They, along with Northern Pines, are the "big game" snakes of my childhood years, so there is alot of sentiment attached to this as well.

I think it is that this is a kingsnake forum with a cal king sub forum. A few years ago cals may have been the norm, but with so many kings it may be hard to pick a favorite, I prefer the specks and desert kings, but have or have had all North American king types except for all the mountain kings. I have 5 cal kings in the collection, as someone earlier said, no collection would be complete without a cali or 5! On that note, here are a few of my favorites...

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Todd Hughes

It has everything to do with the new Florida king morphs, nothing else. Cal kings are still by far the coolest subspecies in the wild. Florida kings are nice, but pretty plain when comparing wild populations to Cal kings.

Have a care when expressing your thoughts and qualify them with a simple "IMHO". This goes a long way to not ticking off others who favor other kinds of snakes with equal fervor and enthusiasm (as yours for California Kings).Remember that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and that goes for "coolness" too.

The same thing could be applied to several other posts here on this thread, yet you didn't see me directing my comments to anyone. I'm sure everyone is aware that was my opinion, not fact.

Glad to hear that. n/p

I'm sure you got my point, but I hope I didn't come across too rude.

Thanks everyone for the replies and pics .