Just wanted to update everyone on the goings on with my agalma colony so far this year. Four females have dropped a total of 26 eggs. Half of them appear fertile. One more female left to lay. I'm disappointed in the fertility rate of 50% so far, but that's mother nature for you. Just when you think you have everything dialed in, you're not as smart as you think you are. Oh and no Martirs this year either. The female was borderline and I held her back from breeding to get another year under her belt. They have got to be one of the most frustrating zonata subspecies ever to work with. That's the news so far. I'll be posting in three months what this years babies look like.
Juarez Wonders
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Mixed Bag So Far
allanbartlett
May 09, 2009 03:01 AM
Replies (6)
joecop
May 09, 2009 10:30 AM
congrats on the eggs and sorry to hear about the fertility rate. That sucks but at least you have the other half!! My knoblochi laid last week and two of the six have gone stinky so far. I feel your pain.
JKruse
May 12, 2009 11:24 PM
Allen you're always almost exactly 3-4 weeks ahead of me with the egg laying. I don't know how you do it being in a much warmer climate than me, but God bless ya. See you at the NARBC later this year...
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Jerry Kruse
And God said, "Let there be zonata subspecies for all to ponder..."
JKruse
May 12, 2009 11:30 PM
the aftermath.......the lil' bugger was still squirming all the way down........these Martirs really can be a pain in the arse....
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Jerry Kruse
And God said, "Let there be zonata subspecies for all to ponder..."
joecop
May 12, 2009 11:59 PM
What a great couple of shots Jerry. Little bugger is not camera shy, that is for sure.
markg
May 15, 2009 04:18 PM
Just curious, has the percentage of fertile eggs gone down for your agalma over the years for the same females?
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Mark
AllanBartlett
May 15, 2009 05:50 PM
It's actually been going up for the past two years as my breeding colony has matured. I don't know what happened this year. My theory is that a male I used on two girls didn't have much viable sperm. Why that is, I don't know. I think next year I will bring the males out two weeks before the girls. For me I always scapegoat the males when the fertility rate drops.
