Nobody else has replied, so I will have a shot at it. Don't take this as gospel, though. I've bred corn snakes, bullsnakes, and garters but never bred any kings.
>Is brumation is definately necessary to breed??? I thought it was, but Darin Chappell wrote "Brumation is not necessary for breeding corns." on the cornsnake forum. Is the same true for cal kings?
In my opinion, the same is true of Cal kings. Just remember that brumation is helpful in both species. You have to get over a threshhold to get breeding, and brumation is more likely to get the snakes over that threshhold than no brumation.
>Also, could someone PLEASE direct me to the best breeding and/or brumation guide (preferably on the internet) for kingsnakes. I have collected info from many, many sources, but there are tons of differences in all the of the guides. Is there any one guide that is the most reliable?
Sorry, most of what I know about breeding kings comes from David Perlowin's booklet, The Common Kingsnakes (Advanced Vivarium Systems).
From my work with other species, I have come to believe that the first breeding season is a very iffy situation unless the snakes have been cycled (day/night temperature cycle, photoperiod, brumation) for 18 months. In other words, don't get discouraged if you don't get anything the first time around. Good luck.
Paul Hollander
