"...was mining for gold one day, when I found..."
Not really.
Actually what we have here is a pair of dried hemipene casts from an approx 1000 gm Butterscotch ghost male, found lying in close proximity on the floor of the female's cage at the beginning of the breeding season.
They are approx 1 cm "tall" (about 1/2"
. The thicker vertical portion is the cast of the hemipene sulcus, or cavity in the hemipene in which sperm travels to enter the female's cloaca during mating. The thinner horizontal portion is the "tag" of sperm plug extending into the vas deferens, or tube between the hemipene and testes. The content of these casts, or "plugs" is dried sperm (mostly DNA, mitochondrial proteins, and glycogen stores), small amounts of waxy-type lipids (fats), and polysaccharides from mucus.
At or around the beginning of the breeding season (or anytime depending on the reproductive activity/non-activity of the male), the male will clear his hemipenes of these casts to prepare for breeding. While they are IN the sulcus of the hemipene, the casts are soft and pliable. Once ejected from the hemipene and out, they dry quickly into firm "casts". Often these casts are HIGHLY symmetrical in their shape.
Anyways, end of lecture. If you've never seen 'em, here is an example. I wish to thank George Knaack for taking the photographs. George used a Nikon model 885 to do the deed. Thanks for looking!
Scott J. Michaels DVM
