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Because I don't have a picture this might be difficult...

I figure it's a normal but I'm wondering what others think...

The corn is a year old, has dark red blotches and the rest is mostly grey...the belly does not have the usual checker pattern though...it is more of a V shaped checker down the belly of the snake...

I'm not sure...and I know a picture would help but the digital broke yesterday...
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Chris Vanderwees
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Based on your description, it's a normal. It may qualify as a Miami phase, but without knowing the age of the animal, it's hard to tell. Pretty much ALL normal hatchlings start out with deep red saddles and greyish backgrounds, though some have brighter yellow dots between the saddles than others. Miami adults, in contrast, lack the yellow between the saddles, and are pretty much red to orange in saddle color, and grey to light tan in background color. Of course... Miamis are just a specific phase of normal.

The belly checkers really don't tell you anything, unless you know some of the history of your snake's parentage.
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