Reptile & Amphibian Forums

i know this is the wrong forum, but corn snakes and Black rat snakes are pretty similar and I thought I'd get a response quickly here.
42 days ago a friend called me to let me know that she found a wild Black rat snake laying her eggs. I picked up the eggs and have been incubating them. out of five fertile eggs, two got really moldy and died after a couple weeks. The eggs all had a strange "dry" appierence, but were firm, the outer layer of the shell was cracked like how dry mud can get. The shells also seem to be unusally thick, because when compared to corn snake eggs, I can't see them nearly as clearly when they are candled.Now one egg has broken along the a crack mark, but it seems way too early to be hatching time(usually been upper 70s F or low 80s F). It dosn't look like the kind of crack made by a hatching neonate, and he hasn't poked out his head, but I can see his eye and scales/pattern. There's a little clear egg goo coming out of the crack. The crack is about half the length of the egg, right across the middle of the top. What should I do? I need advice soon!
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www.freewebs.com/snakesandstuff
"Let us step out into the night and pursue that mighty temptress, adventure." (Albus Dumbledore)

My menagerie
2.2 Ball Pythons (and 5 eggs!) 1.1 Amazon Tree Boas 1.0 Corn Snake (and 9 eggs) 1.0 Dumeril's Boa 2.1.10 Bearded Dragons 2.1.2 Crested Geckos (and 4 eggs!) 1.1.4 Eastern Box Turtles (eggs?)1.0 Northern Mockingbird 0.3 Chickens 2.0 Cats 1.1 Ferrets plus lots of mice and feeder insects and 3 Black Rat snake eggs

the baby is sticking his nose out a bit now, he looks completely developed. I guess maybe he's hatching? Now that I think of it, the temp was probably higher than 80 ish, some days it could have been 90, some nights were 65, I incubated them at the outside temp since they're native.
Its just hard for me to beleive that he'd be htching after 42 days. Any thoughts?
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www.freewebs.com/snakesandstuff
"Let us step out into the night and pursue that mighty temptress, adventure." (Albus Dumbledore)

My menagerie
2.2 Ball Pythons (and 5 eggs!) 1.1 Amazon Tree Boas 1.0 Corn Snake (and 9 eggs) 1.0 Dumeril's Boa 2.1.10 Bearded Dragons 2.1.2 Crested Geckos (and 4 eggs!) 1.1.4 Eastern Box Turtles (eggs?)1.0 Northern Mockingbird 0.3 Chickens 2.0 Cats 1.1 Ferrets plus lots of mice and feeder insects and 3 Black Rat snake eggs

n/p
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Arrrggg!
It's like Shalom, but for pirates.
- iCarly

In my experience Black Rat Snake egg shells are thicker than those of corn snakes. They are aso larger on average than corn snake eggs. It sounds like the eggs are hatching, so I'd just leave them be. High temperatures cause eggs to hatch early, but it's also linked to causing deformities. Black rat snakes tend to lay their eggs under rocks or in logs and presumably the temperatures in these spots doesn't reach the 90s (although I don't know of any long term studies to show what actual wild incubation temperatures are like). For me, black rat snake eggs took 60 days to hatch, just like corn snake eggs incubated under the same conditions.

Tim

Third Eye

only 42 days! It only got in the 90s one day... he's not deformed though... hope the other 2 hatch out ok.
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www.freewebs.com/snakesandstuff
"Let us step out into the night and pursue that mighty temptress, adventure." (Albus Dumbledore)

My menagerie
2.2 Ball Pythons (and 5 eggs!) 1.1 Amazon Tree Boas 1.0 Corn Snake (and 9 eggs) 1.0 Dumeril's Boa 2.1.10 Bearded Dragons 2.1.3 Crested Geckos (and 3 eggs!) 1.1.4 Eastern Box Turtles (eggs?)1.0 Northern Mockingbird 0.3 Chickens 2.0 Cats 1.1 Ferrets plus lots of mice and feeder insects and 3 Black Rat snake eggs

Hopefully you don't' live in Ontario(Canada)..as it's illegal to take black rat snakes from the wild or their eggs here..or even own them as pets, even if bought as captive bred.

Other than that concern, congrats.
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PHLdyPayne

here your not allowed to have the snake or disturb the eggs. Both are against the law.......
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CD
Corns(Adults)
1.0 Snow ZigZag (01)
1.0 Bloodred het Pewter(05)
0.1 Banded Motley het Amel (01)
0.1 Blizzard het Anery A (01)
Babies
1.0 Normal Aztec het Snow (07)
0.1 Normal Aztec het ???? (08)

Here we're allowed to have up to five of a native species of reptile, but I don't know if CB or CH count, probably do though. I think corns are an exception, along with some kind of king snake I think.
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www.freewebs.com/snakesandstuff
"Let us step out into the night and pursue that mighty temptress, adventure." (Albus Dumbledore)

My menagerie
2.2 Ball Pythons (and 5 eggs!) 1.1 Amazon Tree Boas 1.0 Corn Snake (and 9 eggs) 1.0 Dumeril's Boa 2.1.10 Bearded Dragons 2.1.3 Crested Geckos (and 3 eggs!) 1.1.4 Eastern Box Turtles (eggs?)1.0 Northern Mockingbird 0.3 Chickens 2.0 Cats 1.1 Ferrets plus lots of mice and feeder insects and 3 Black Rat snake eggs

owning local snakes in states usually means wild or captive....the number allowed is total owned....

Pa allows one black ratsnake with the possesion of a fishing license......alot of stuff was added to the 0 owned/do not touch list this year.....(box turtles are one).....

...
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You can have up to five native species each. Five corns, five Eastern Kings, Five mole kings, etc. The five limit is on natural/wild type animals. You can have more, but you would need a permit.
That only counts for normal/wild type animals. If you have six butter corns, six snow corns, 10 albinio Northern Pine Snakes, etc. that does not count toward the five limit. Steve

>>Here we're allowed to have up to five of a native species of reptile, but I don't know if CB or CH count, probably do though. I think corns are an exception, along with some kind of king snake I think.

its illegal in this Lovely state of VA to sell black rat snakes. BUT you can give them away..... very weird rules...
~kin
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~Sober Serpents~
www.freewebs.com/soberserpents
Corns, Creamsicles, A Black Rat, A pair of Leucistic Black Rat X Leucistic Texas Rat Intergrades, Thayeri, Cal Kings, A Jungle Corn, Ball Pythons, A reverse Trio of Candoia, Leopard Geckos, Green Anoles, a Snapping Turtle, a White Cheeked Mud Turtle, a Bearded Dragon, an Adult Rescue Iguana, and A Baby Iguana

We have that same crap in California.
I can give away my baby alligator lizards, but no more than 2 to any non licensed individual and I can't charge a dead dime.

Only a few species are legal to sell here.
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Arrrggg!
It's like Shalom, but for pirates.
- iCarly