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This is a progression sequence of one of the darker hatchlings I produced in 2009. The ontogenetic transformation is just unreal.
a bit later on.....
later still......
and a photo taken today as I was doing some cleaning.....
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing" 
Doug, that is just unreal!!! What a beautiful animal. Those things give Deppei a real run for their money, if not beat them for the transformation.
Joe
Thanks buddy!....yeah, most people would never guess in a million years that is the very same animal later on.
Heck yeah, deppei are some incredible animals as well. Dell and Cole posted a pic a long time ago that was absolutely insane looking, and Billy has some smoker "Pit" stuff from lots of renowned bloodlines as well as you probably know.
~Doug
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"
No no no no....they do not.
Deppei still beat them, 10000 to 1!
LOL! 
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Genesis 1:1
Ha, I was wondering if you were going to have a opinion on that one.
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Gerard
"Destruction of the empty spaces, is my one and only crime."
HA HA!!!
Then again, my opinion is somewhat tainted, due to my love for pits.
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Genesis 1:1
Mr. Biased Party Pooper!..LOL!
~Doug
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"
Wow, what a huge change! Can you FL king guys predict which ones will turn out the nicest? I hope you are not offended by me calling you a FL king guy. hahaha I know you have some other really cool snakes as well.
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Certainly no offense taken..LOL!
Yeah, you can get some fairly decent educated ideas of what many might end up looking like, but knowing exactly how they "actually" will end up looking like when fully mature is virtually impossible. There are a few certain features to look for, and some individuals of certain locales/bloodlines there is absolutely no question about if they will be butt ugly or screamers right from the start. Really though, alot of what happens is just downright surprising as all hell to be quite honest Ross..HAHA!!
Now you could find a very drab king from the cane fields for example and know it won't exactly mature into a "prince" of a specimen, but some stuff can really take a guy by surprise. I have some other examples of this I'll post later on too.
~Doug
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"
Sounds good.
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Please do I'm still nervous about deciding what to hold back myself. I can't hold everything for 18 months to see how it turns out you know?
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We wouldn't have 6 and a half billion people if you had to be beautiful to get laid.
.
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That's awesome. Very interesting. That is a total transformation. Does this happen in all snakes to different extents? And do snakes have melanin for that chemical reaction to happen?
no matter the explanation. That's Cool.
DAVY
Thanks!,....
Well, no, not all snakes by far, just certain types of species/subspecies and even individual bloodlines or strains. It really depends on zillions of things. These definitely have melanin, but other colors, and combinations of colors start being more pronounced as these age and the speckling (scale basal lightening) gradually lightens the base of the scales that eventually lighten the entire snake's overall appearance as they mature over time.
~Doug
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"
Very interesting! Do you ever get any that stay with the baby colors into adulthood?
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Bob
Pyromaniac AKA Greatballzofire
Keeping cats allows man to cohabitate with tigers. Keeping reptiles allows man to cohabitate with dinosaurs.
"Very interesting! Do you ever get any that stay with the baby colors into adulthood?"
Hi Bob,....
No, it just isn't in their natural genetic predisposition to stay the same as they mature. That goes for most any floridana. Even very plainer, drabber looking Florida kings will change to some degree as they mature. Also the individuals of any Florida king clutch can often look substantially different from one another. Some far more than others of course.
cheers, ~Doug
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"
Very cool! What a change, thanks for showing us. Dave.
thanks a bunch Dave,.....my pleasure man!
~Doug
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"
Yep, that pretty cool!
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Gerard
"Destruction of the empty spaces, is my one and only crime."
Thanks Gerard, I knew you would like the drastic changes they went through.
~Doug
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"
Man Doug....that is insane!!! Then again, why would I be surprised, as your brooks are the best I have ever seen!!!
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Genesis 1:1
Thanks Billy,......I really appreciate that buddy!..
~Doug
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"
Very cool pics Doug....
I wish there was a way we could tell if a hatchling mex mex is going to be a black adult or gray adult......or something in between.....
The only thing to go by is to look at their parents.....
I guess one way to look at what a hatchling Floridana would be to look at its parents and/or grandparents......
With thayeri man traits are truly recessive but they aren't pigmentation mutations but rather patterns and colors because they are so dang polymorphic.......
Being able to predict anything takes all the fun out of it anyway in my opinion.....LOL
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John Lassiter
Poor planning and procrastination on your part does not constitute an emergency on my part...
Thanks John,...
HAHA!!,....I hear ya man!........some of that stuff is just IMPOSSIBLE to predict to any real degree at all. Like you said, it can make it all interesting as all heck and keep you on your toes..LOL!
~Doug
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"a snake in the grass is a GOOD thing"
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