Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hey everyone! I am new to the milksnake forum as I have just aquired my first pair of milks, and black milks at that. I was just wondering about what age and weight the males reach sexual maturity at? Any information would be great! My female is 4yrs old and the male that I have is 2. Is he to young still or am I ok to start introducing them? Both were cooled and are about 2 weeks out. Thanks in advance!

For the male, here is a complex formula to determine maturity:

1. Take the male's weight, divide by pi, and take the natural log of that, then integrate over his age in minutes. Then discard that data.
2. Introduce male
3. If he tries to mate with her, he is sexually mature.
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Mark

Thanks mark lol. Thats kinda what I was thinking, have them together now and there is a bunch of chasing going on. Keeping my fingers crossed! One other quick question if you dont mind, should i just keep them together a day at a time, a few days a week? If not, what would you recommend? Appreciate the response

Hello,
It sounds like you already got some good advice from Mark (except for that first step... I was told there'd be no math!), and it sounds like your young male is eager, but just two weeks out of brumation, the female may not be ready yet. When did she last shed? I don't brumate my gaigeae, but those who do usually don't see breeding behavior until after the second post-brumation shed.

As far as how long to leave them together... guess it depends on how much you trust the female to not eat the male... I imagine there must be a significant size difference. I let my pair co-habitate for about two or three weeks last year and had my best clutch ever (11 eggs, all fertile), but then again, they are much closer in size (6 1/2 and 5 1/2 feet) and are a proven pair that have never shown any signs of agression towards each other. So, I'd say keep a very close eye on their behavior, and they will let you know when they are ready, willing, and able.

Nate

Got any pics of that 6 1/2 footer in hand, or in a way to see its size? I am dying to see a big one like that!!!
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~Markus

The very existence of flamethrowers means that sometime, somewhere, someone said to themselves..."You know, I really want to set those people over there on fire...but I'm just not close enough to get the job done!

Here's one from about four years ago... he's grown a few inches since then.

Niiiiiiice! Thanks Nate!!! Thats awesome! My female is about 52 inches right now and my male at 49 or 50 depending on his mood when I measure him ha! I am really looking forward to them getting up above the 5 foot mark here this year and then hopefully onto 6!!!
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~Markus

The very existence of flamethrowers means that sometime, somewhere, someone said to themselves..."You know, I really want to set those people over there on fire...but I'm just not close enough to get the job done!

>>Here's one from about four years ago... he's grown a few inches since then.
>>
>>

nice cages. are those under-cabinet LED lights? do they work well with timers? how's the heat generation?

terry

Thanks my father a.k.a. GerryG made it for me. It originally had nine 15W halogen puck lights connected to an X10 Powerhouse system controlled by my computer. Last time I moved, the cage had to be taken apart and reassembled, and when I put it back together, I opted to leave the lights out. They put out a little too much heat for the gaigeae, and the covers would occasionally fall off, causing both a very hot piece of glass to fall down into the cage, and leaving an EXTREMELY hot halogen bulb exposed. The bulbs also burned out frequently, and at about 9 bucks a pop, were awfully expensive to replace. I tried fluorescent lights, but they apparently weren't compatible with the timers I was using, and would self-destruct after a few days. I considered replacing them with LED puck lights, but those were a little too expensive. Ohhh, and let's not forget that as I was taking the cages apart, I noticed that cypress mulch dust from the top two cages had been piling up near the wiring for the lights of the bottom two cages, which could have shorted out and burst into flames at any time. So, I decided that lighting the cage artificially was more trouble and expense than it was worth. It's now in an area that gets plenty of direct natural light in the afternoon, so they can bask for a few hours a day if they're so inclined.

Nate

>>... have them together now and there is a bunch of chasing going on....

Mike, successful pairings usually occur when there's less chasing and more foreplay. In other words, if the female's simply fleeing, and maybe even lashing her tail violently in an effort to deter the male, she's not ready and you might as well separate them. As mentioned by someone else in this thread, it might be better to wait til after a shed. Or two. Both genders' behavior indicates their readiness. The male will stay ready, so the key is waiting til she is too. My experience is mostly with Hondurans. With them I could tell within 10-15 minutes if pursuit was turning into reproductive behavior or was likely to persist: If the latter, i'd separate them and look forward to a future opportunity to pair them when both were ready. When that happens the female might still "flee" but it's sort of low-key cruising around the cage, with the male following and stretching his body along hers. Eventually, when the time is right, the cruising slows and you'll see her raise her tail for him. It's a two-player game. Good luck!

wanted to thank everyone for the info. I will definately keep everyone posted! THANKS AGAIN, Mike