Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I understand Genetics, you have one normal to a pastel etc etc etc
and down the line you eventualy get a super

BUT

Where did each each kind of ball python come from, and is it possible to create your own morph? I am newbie so entreat me, not belittle because there was a time you didnt know much of anything about snakes either.

Thank you everyone

D

Good questions. I can give you the big picture but not all the details.

As far as I know, all the different mutant genes originated spontaneously out in the wild, in Africa. A germ cell mutation is a change in a gene's DNA in a cell that eventually produces a sperm or egg. Spontaneous is a fancy word meaning that we have no clue why the change took place; it just happened. Mutations also take place in cells outside the ovaries and testes, but only a mutation in a germ cell line can be passed on to the next generation.

Mutations can turn up in a captive bred group of animals, too. It's just that there are a lot more ball pythons over in Africa than in captivity, and people have only been breeding ball pythons for around 15 years or so.

It's fairly easy to create your own morph from combinations of mutant genes that already exist. Of course, once others learn what the combination is, they can do the same.

It is possible to mutate a gene in a lab. X-rays, various chemicals, and radioactive minerals are the most common ways to produce mutations in the lab. But the process is prohibitively time consuming and expensive to use with a slow-reproducing creature like a ball python. And there is no guarantee that such new mutant genes would be worth anything in the pet trade. So as far as I know, nobody is trying it, yet.

Hope this helps.

Paul Hollander

genetics are crazy.3 words i can sum it with,without technical terms,nature,evolution,and genetic mutation on an evolutionary scale not scientific scale.i personally think that mutations happen 4 a reason.some are beautiful some are rather dull but beautiful in their own way.