Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hello I am Gidi,

I am the son of Wim and we like to work with Elaphe Dione and other interesting species like Rhynchophis Boulengeri (tnx IA ).

This are our Rhynchophis Boulengeri male and female 2004:

This are our Coelognathus Subradiatus male and female 2004:

This are our Coelognathus Flavolineatus male and female 2004:

I hope you enjoy the pics.

Best regards Gidi van de Belt Netherlands Amsterdam.
Link

Nice photos. Thanks for posting them.

Interesting that your subradiatas don't look very much like the ones I imported from Indonesia about 10 years ago. Mine were Roti Islands and perhaps yours are from a different island - I know the Roti form does vary from the others. Wish I could've really worked with them - but they came in in terrible condition (those that actually arrived alive at all). I'd love to get my hands on some Roti subradiatas again!

And congrats on your very nice collection!

-DT

Our Subratiatus are CB'2004. Maybe there is some color variation but I am not sure.

Regards Gidi.

Those are very nice snakes and interesting species. I've always thought Zamenis longissimus was similar in some ways to C. flavolineatus. Good luck with them and I hope you keep us posted on their progress.

Terry

Just draw a comparison between those two species,this is CB'04 Elaphe longissima(Zamenis l.)from Korita, Bosnia Herzegovina.

-Timo Paasikunnas/Finland

Hey Timo,

Very nice species and ofcourse nice pics.

Regards Gidi & Wim.

p.s. I hope on E. Dione korea females.
Link

That's a beautiful baby. I only meant the general appearance of the snakes could mean a relationship. I know they have different colors. I'd like to see the two side by side someday. Thanks...Terry.

Ok I will do that . The color chance in R.Boulengeri is very interesting.

Gidi

Well, there's a strike for jealousy from me! I've been trying to hunt down some of those guys for a while now! Beautiful snakes, congrats!
-----
Conrad
Too Fast Reptiles
www.toofastreptiles.bravehost.com

Hi Gidi,
I recently received a 2004 Rhynchophis and am working out exactly what he wants to eat. He seems really focused on fish rather than mouse pinkies. The breeder mentioned that he would put a small fish and a live pinky in a small cup of very shallow water and place the snake into it. The snake always ate the fish and sometimes the pinky as well (but not often). When I fed the snake last week, it went after the fish (placed in a shallow water dish) very quickly but ignored the live pink. I later placed the pink in the water dish and the snake struck it immediately but then dropped it and wouldn't eat it. He does hang out near the water dish often. I'm thinking he's hunting. Have you had any similar issues getting your hatchling pair feeding? I'm hoping the fish business is short lived because I really prefer feeding my snakes mice. But as long as he eats something, I'm happy!

Thanks,

-----
Lora

Hi, Lora.

The fish-eating behavior of boulengeri is very interesting. We know they come from the subtropical rainforests of North Vietnam, and that they probably hang around streams and eat fish, especially when young. I would be willing to bet they're sorta like E. milksnakes that switch to rodents when older and can handle it better. Also, they may be a little like rough green snakes and hang around in shrubbery alongside streams, since they seem to be semi-arboreal. I'm thinking the appendage on the snout might be an adaptation for fish foraging as they put their head in amongst rocks looking for them. There's a water snake in South Vietnam that has this appendage and stays in the water all the time. I've also had ideas about them being somewhat related to the Gonyosoma sps.

I don't know why there hasn't been more written about their natural history and the behaviors in captivity. Of course, it was not one of the ones included in Schulz' book. Fell through the cracks, so-to-speak. Hopefully, those who have the sp. will keep us posted on these weird (for a ratsnake) fish eating behaviors.

Here's a trick you might use to get him to switch that I use with Butler's garters. Freeze a few pinks in with a fish and some juices in a plastic ziploc bag. The pinks will smell a lot like fish. Feed fish and pinks for awhile, then switch to mice. Good luck, and hope my trick works for you.

TC

Hi Terry,

I did as much research as I could on the Rhynchophis before bringing him home, but there really isn't much out there in English on the internet (and you're right that they aren't mentioned in the Monograph on Elaphe which I also recently purchased). That's one of the things that fascinates and frustrates me with the Asian rats. With the local Elaphe, I grew up finding and observing them, so I have an idea as to what they need in captivity. I'd love to get some information on Rhynchopis behavior in the wild to help with my captive husbandry. I could certainly picture this critter dangling from an overhanging branch catching fish and tadpoles in a small stream.

I'll keep you posted on my efforts to switch the little nosey guy over to plain mice, without the fishey appetizer. I appreciate the suggestion for scenting and will add it to my list of future feeding strategies.

Thanks!
-----
Lora

I know what you mean. I kinda feel the same way. I've looked for info on Asian rats for ages, and Shulz' monograph is still the best thing I've seen. He also has a book out on herps of the Malaysian Peninsula, I think. I have a book on Thai snakes and one on Chinese herps, but N. Vietnam pretty much got left out. I don't think there are many herpers in Vietnam. They pretty much just eat their herps. The thing that's ironic is that it's one of the most productive areas in the entire world for colubrids and many other herps. It's a real challenge and one of the reasons I'm into Asians. We have to gather as much info as possible from our captives, so that we can encourage research on these cool animals before they're all gone. Look at the advances in academia just in the last four years with the surge in interest and flow of info from the hobbyists.

I know I'm preaching to the choir. Keep up the good work and I'll look forward to your next post

Terry

hello,

We feed them one day pinkys. One of them aet dead mice by itself and the other one i must force feed. We never tried feed them fish but i am gonna try.

tnx for your post.

Greetings Gidi
Link