In December I discovered a copy of the January, 2005, issue of Reptiles Magazine with the incredible Ball Python cover and article by Mike Wilbanks. I had Ball Pythons as a kid and really enjoyed them. When I saw a picture of the Spider ball, I was "bit by the bug," so to speak, to get one (hence my "handle" -- BitByTheSpider).
On January 13, 2005 I purchased a male, Spider Ball Python from Bryan Kollwitz of Exotic Ball Pythons. He weighted 412 grams but was eating well. I named him "Lucky." On January 28th I purchased a normal female named Alli from a private seller who had her as a pet and offered her for sale on Kingsnake.com.
By Feb. 2 Lucky was up to 530 grams. On February 28, I decided to put the two together. Lucky wagged his tail like a dog with excitement. He didn't seem to know what to do with the beautiful female before him ... but in time he figured it out.
I never saw Alli ovulate and was quite surprised when I looked in her cage earlier this month and discovered her coiled around a clutch of eggs! She weighed 1,556 grams before dropping her eggs and weighed 1,219 grams afterward. She laid 5 eggs total but two were slugs, one weighing 10 grams the other weighing 8 grams. That left 319 grams for the 3 good eggs, approximately 106 grams each!
I quickly followed Bryan Kollwitz's instructions for preparing an incubation chamber, mixing the proper ratio of vermiculite, pearlite and water in a Styrofoam fish shipping box. I then sprinkled dry vermiculite on top of the moistened mixture to create a dry patch for the eggs to sit on. Then I added a glass top and placed it in a half bath that we converted into an "incubation room" using an oil filled heater hooked up to a Helix 1500 thermostat.
This is the first clutch of eggs I've ever produced, so it's very exciting. I can't say enough about the help I've received from Bryan Kollwitz, who has been very generous with his time and knowledge. Now it's just a matter of waiting. Of course, I'm hoping for three Spiders, but I'd be happy to just get one. Wish me luck! -- Joe
