Reptile & Amphibian Forums

This past weekend I was speaking to a friend of mine who breeds boas and he told me that he bred 2 albino boas together in '08, but the female did not produce young for him that year... Then in '09 he bred the same female with a normal boa that was defiantly NOT het albino and the female produced a clutch of normals AND albino's... Which might/would suggest that this female retained sperm from '08 to produce in '09..

Hearing this peaked my interest and got me thinking that if something like this happens with GBK's that may explain some of the questionable looking animals out there.

What are your opinions on sperm retention in Alterna??

~ Mike Russo

>>What are your opinions on sperm retention in Alterna??

Sperm retention is a real and factual possibility in alterna.
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Herp Conservation Unlimited
Conservation through captive propagation
Mexicana Group Directory
Photography by Joseph E. Forks

Doesn’t sperm retention explain a second fertile clutch without the benefit of a second copulation, at least in some limited sense?

Robert

>>Doesn’t sperm retention explain a second fertile clutch without the benefit of a second copulation, at least in some limited sense?>>

Yes, I would agree 100% on the second fertile clutch in the same season. I have had that happen here a few times. But, the idea of females retaining sperm till the following year is something that I have really not thought about in the past and it very well might be worth thinking about if we are breeding our females with different males each season. Especially so if "oddballs" are popping up.

~ Mike Russo

>>Yes, I would agree 100% on the second fertile clutch in the same season. I have had that happen here a few times. But, the idea of females retaining sperm till the following year is something that I have really not thought about in the past and it very well might be worth thinking about if we are breeding our females with different males each season. Especially so if "oddballs" are popping up.
>>
>>~ Mike Russo

For that very reason, I try to breed virgin animals to any new morph. Year-long retention has certainly happened in other snakes from the Lampropeltini.

i didn't cycle or put my indigos together this year....for several reasons.....and my one girl gave me 4 good eggs that produced 4 red chinned females.....i really didn't deserve that kinda of loyality....

Assuming that albinism in boas is a homozygous recessive condition, the ONLY way to yield both albino and normal phenotype offspring from a female albino parent...would be sperm contribution from a carrier for the albino gene. Therefore, sperm retention is not at issue here, but rather the male involved in the second breeding was het for albinism, despite what the breeder thought.

I do agree with your thoughts, But would you agree that two males could father a single clutch?? In this case one male in '08 and one male in '09..

The particular breeder that I am referring to has been breeding herps since the mid 80's and literally wrote the book on boas. So, I would assume he knows the background on his animals.

~ Mike Russo

You are correct. Multiple paternity could account for the mix of normals and albinos in the offspring. The only real way to settle the issue would be to breed two of the offspring down the road...babies from that pairing would yield:

Option A: all normal offspring, meaning that neither of the parents were het for albinism, thereby confirming the sperm retention hypothesis

or

Option B: a mix of normals and albinos, proving that both parents were het for albinism and disproving the sperm retention hypothesis.

Lot of trouble to answer the question, but interesting to consider

Bob

Link

>>I do agree with your thoughts, But would you agree that two males could father a single clutch?? In this case one male in '08 and one male in '09..

Poly-paternity of any single clutch / litter is another real possibility.
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Herp Conservation Unlimited
Conservation through captive propagation
Mexicana Group Directory
Photography by Joseph E. Forks

You are correct. Multiple paternity could account for the mix of normals and albinos in the offspring. The only real way to settle the issue would be to breed two of the offspring down the road...babies from that pairing would yield:

Option A: all normal offspring, meaning that neither of the parents were het for albinism, thereby confirming the sperm retention hypothesis

or

Option B: a mix of normals and albinos, proving that both parents were het for albinism and disproving the sperm retention hypothesis.

Lot of trouble to answer the question, but interesting to consider

Bob

SierraHerps.com

tanks

I really think you guys should rethink retaining sperm in graybands, it is gross, an act of unkindness bordering on animal cruelty, and there are places that will actually pay you for those deposits! Seriously. LOL! I am pretty darn sure it happens, I would be careful and only back up animals from the same locale. I theenk that's how most of the locality problems got started here...if that isn't important( of course it is) then back 'em up with whatever.
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Todd Hughes

ahhh.....them guys would fit the ODDBALL description!!!!!