Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hello,

I just picked up a really cool male leopard ratsnake. I've been told that females are really tough to get... I guess I have two questions ...
1) Why are females any tougher than males??
2) Where can I get one!!!???

Thanks,
Steve

Congrats on getting the male situla, Steve.

Females are often sold only in pairs with males, because the seller does not want to end up with surplus males. Males being in less demand by breeders - you only need one male of a species to breed to "X" number of females to get lots of babies, etc. Also, situla lays small clutches - something like 3 - 6 eggs, I think - so there are never large numbers of them in the hobby.

I would keep watching the classifieds for them - sometimes someone will put a lone female up for sale...
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-Toby Brock
Southwestern Center for Herpetological Research

Hello Steve and Toby,
I got a pair of situla a few years ago, first clutch was 4 good eggs, from which I got 2.2 babies , last year it was also 4 good eggs but I got 3.1
BTW, a couple of the above eggs did not look good at all, yet developed perfectly well.One had a dark pink spot.
The babies hatch out large in comparison to adult size, and are easy to raise. Adults take smaller prey for their size when compared to other ratsnakes,

Enjoy your leopard!
David