Reptile & Amphibian Forums

OK, as a newly re-laspsed herper I went to my first ever show last weekend. My intentions were to browse and educate myself about what were the snakes available and about current prices.

I always wanted a kingsnake as a kid, and observed many different Fl. and Cal. King varieties(and much mix and match) for around $20-30 for babies and about $50-60 for adults. But there were a couple of Thayeris there, a snake which I do not remember ever hearing about years ago. The guy was charging $100 for a very tame male, he said was just about full grown(about 2 1/2').I saw some half grown babies for $75-80.

I was able to stick to the plan of not buying yet, but I as very interested in learning more about this snake, since Cal kings seem so very common in comparision (although still beautiful), and I'm still hoping to collect a FL one day myself .

Are they a good kingsnake to keep? Was that a decent price??I may take a day trip to Daytona to buy,what can I expect to pay their? Any regulars here selling them there? If I get into the whole breeding thing,how are they to breed? Any info would be greatly appreciated.Thanks in advance.

Lloyd Heilbrunn

Palm Beach Gardens,Fl.

I'm not an expert (I do have 6 Thayeri however), but here goes. Thayeri are a sub-species of the Mexican Kingsnake. They are also known as Variable Kingsnakes and Nuevo Leon Kingsnakes. They are a great little snake that rarely exceeds 3ft. They are gentle, hearty eaters, easy to keep. It has been illegal to import them into the U.S. for at least 20 years, so the majority of today's snakes have been line-bred for generations from the original snakes legally imported in the 70's and early 80's. They come in three different phases. An all black phase, the milksnake phase, and the leonis phases. Generations of line breeding has produced very bright red, orange, yellow, peach, etc.. animals. Some questional breeders have cross bred Thayeri with all kinds of things but there are several great dealers out there with excellent reputations, and pure Thayeri. I'll just name a few (sorry if you get left out) John Lassiter, John Cherry (Cherryville Farms), Vivid Reptiles (Tim Gebhard), Dan Vermilya, Robert Applegate, Ric Blair, David Weymouth (Wasatch Mtn. Colubrids), Bob Johnson (Reptile Artistry)......... Most of these guys can be found through the "breeders" page of this site.
Vivid Thayeri Page

Thank You.Any comments on prices?

I have seen Thayeri sell for anywhere inbetween $50 to $300. The higher priced snakes have brighter, more saturated colors, and/or unique patterns. The lower priced snakes are a bit more drab, but probably more representative of what wild Thayeri really look like. The least I have paid for one is $135, the most is $300. I have been buying higher end snakes to start a breeding project. I should be ready to start breeding next season.

Check the classifieds on this site and see what they are selling for.

You can expect to pay $25. and up for hatchlings at Daytona or other big shows. I would say that a "nice looking" hatchling (they are SO variable!)would fetch $50. on the average. I had 2.2 on my table last year that were nice enough for me to keep as future breeders that were priced at $35.-$50/ ea and never sold. I am really glad they didn't. Looking around, I found no others as nice for the price. Shop around.
:Mark