Questions at the heart of the matter...

[ClarkT]

I sure have a hard time finding definite answers to many questions on BP Breeding. I wish a large breeder would take on a project to determine a bunch of things. For example:

1- does palpating at any point cause slugs?

2- what exactly is the cause of Captive bred BPs starting the building process/growing follicles/building fat reserves before breeding? Along with this one:
- is it temperature? I don't believe so, as many breeders do nothing to change temps and still breed without problems...
- Is it barometric pressure? (storms rolling in...)
- Is it light cycle?
- Is it humidity changes?
- Does it have much or anything to do with what time of year they themselves hatched?
- Is it the scent of a ready and willing male?
- Is it a result of feeding them more for a few months, thereby triggering their "clock"?
- How much of a combination of these, and others, is it really?

3- Maybe someone already knows this, but I can't really find a definite answer: How much temperature swing during incubation is too much? Some say more than 2 deg. Some say more than 3. Is temperature swing an actual cause of birth defects? Does it specifically cause kinking, twisted umbilical cords, missing eyes, higher mortality rates at hatching, etc?

3a- With temperature swing, is the problem more because of condensation forming on eggs from the drop in temp?

4- How much oxygen does the egg need during incubation? If they are in a small room, with not much fresh air entering, does that affect how much the egg tub needs to be opened/ventilated during incubation?

5- Is the number of eggs a result of the size of the BP (weight and length), age, or genetics? Or a combo of all of the above? Is it more about the health of the animal?

6- Are there really any real disadvantages of maternal incubation, or is it mostly hearsay by those who haven't tried it?

7- If maternal incubation is used, are BPs able to raise their body temp at all?

8- Is the spider gene really homozygous?

9- Why are BPs so addicting?
10- What's Big Gunns up to these days?

I don't necessarily expect answers to all these questions, but it sure would be nice if a few breeders would conduct some experiments--possibly involving the use of ultrasounds, pressurized rooms, complete climate controlled environments...etc...--and research some of these. However, I don't see that any breeder would see the $$$ results of such research, so I wouldn't really expect them to go after things like this.

Anyway, thanks for reading the long post...Feel free to add questions and discuss...This is all just curiosity.