Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hello
Does anyone have any pics of Black X Green tree monitors? Either babies or adults? Are they more/less expensive then pure black & green trees? One last question: Who has successfully bred these monitors? thanks
Robert

Hi,
Mike Stefani bred V.prasinus x V. beccari a couple of years ago, and it resembled the older V. prasinus variety known as: V. p. kordensis - which was elevated to subspecies status last year or 2002, and then later negated...they do cross breed, and if you look at their hemipene structures they are virtually identical except for size, V.[p] beccari having smaller hemipene structures than V. prasinus; V. macraei hemipene structures look abit different than either of the afore-mentioned. I do not have descriptions of V. bohmei or other seen, but not formally described types of V. prasinus: a banana yellow type and a amaretto-colored type...
cheers,
mbayless

There was only one of these such animals produced, like Mark said, by Mike Stefani..that one hatchling unfortunately did not survive. It is questionable as to what it would have looked like as an adult.

Although it has proven to work, I have always said many times before, that I don't see why anybody would want to try and cross the two species together, when the pure species themselves are not being produced. I feel that we keepers should focus on producing a species first, then worry about hybridizing, or integrading species or subspecies later on..

We should learn the fundamentals and steps involved, in getting them to reproduce, and hatch out healthy offspring(not so easy of a task, according to many people's experiences..ask Mike, he hatched out 1 beccari out of 20eggs), and then should we start experimenting, or "mucking around"... Experimenting first, will more than likely end up in failure, in my opinion... Learn the ropes first... Breeding tree monitors is not an easy thing to accomplish, and hybridizing them is going to be much more difficult.. Keep in mind, although very similar, these animals are in fact different, and getting two animals of each race/species that like one another is going to be a job in itself..I guess it can be applied to interracial marriages...not everyone is physically attracted to someone of the opposite race... all I'm saying is that the chances are slim.... Pehaps Mike got lucky, in that his pair was in fact compatible with one another... I'd think most such pairings would not work...

I am not going to deny that an adult hybrid of the two would be colorful and beautiful,and quite a specimen to see.. I just don't see the point in doing something like that, this early off in tree monitor varaniculture... Like I said, that's just my opinion... Take care, have a wonderful day...

bob
The Odatriad