Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I apologize that I broke the TOS agreement on kingsnake.com....I had a feeling my post would get zapped pretty quickly; there are times when certain things need to be exposed. But, it does leave me thinking about some conversations we have had in the past about the future of our captive gene pool of couperi. Anyone breeding this species, while obligated and commended to disclose potential problems of a particular snake(s), should not be selling animals as pairs for the purpose of breeding; that's the problem I have. While I realize that these animals will never make it back out to the wild, shouldn't we protect the genetic integrity of our already limited captive gene pool of this species? Suppose there comes a day when the only hope for the survival of this species is to tap into captive populations. Not trying to stir the pot but I think it is a topic worthy of discussion.

You were right on. Period.
Thanks for having the desire and forethought to champion an endangered species and biological national heritage.
Thank you for having the desire to raise awareness and to educate on potential issues.
Thank you for contributing to worthwhile conversation topics that may help us all champion this treasured endangered species, even if only for the individuals we keep (and their progeny.)
You can sleep well tonight!
Matt

Well,

It didn't last long did it? I guess I missed the flurry of posts that seem to indicate that KS will need to kill a thread.

I think however that your post was well intentioned, and a worthy topic of discussion. Not so much meant to be an indictment of a particular seller but rather to raise the concern.

While I recognize the only demonstrable factor for this defect is high incubation temperatures, it remains unknown whether there exists a genetic predisposition in certain cases that increases the likelihood of occurrence given the correct stimuli/environment.

I also recognize that aside from cosmetic imperfection the animal is likely to be healthy and live a long life. But as a caveat I would offer that these animals should not be bred until it is determined that this is ONLY caused by temp issues.

Things that come to the forefront in my admittedly less than experienced and ignorant mind include:

Why, if higher temps are the cause, does not the entire clutch exhibit the deformity? Presumably all the eggs were subjected to the same environmental conditions.

Is the malady more frequent in one sex over another?

Dare I be so bold as to ask, if we breed two animals exhibiting the same defect what is the proportion of clutch mates exhibiting the characteristic vis a vis those animals without the physical manifestation of the malady. And yes, both normal temps and higher temps should be checked.

Does this malady affect other Dry’s? I’ve seen it commented upon in D couperi but don’t recall it being commented upon in any other ssp. Apologies in advance if I missed something along the way…

In any event, I don’t think Rob has an ax to grind. Nor do I believe there is any intent to do anything but raise a valid question.

As they say “opinions are like…” so this, is mine.

Regards,
Jeff Nichols