Whats inside your Ball Python??

Well today i got to see.

I work at a museum were i prepare skeletons for the collection. Last week someone lost their whole collection of chondros, carpets, 2 macklots, and a ball python. The way to make a skeleton from a frozen specimen, is by skinning them and such (i won't get into it). So today i descided to prepare the ball python. While i was working, i looked at the first third of the body and then the last 2 thirds. and let me tell you the muscles in that first thirs, were nearly twice as thick as the last third. it was incredible. Then i thought about it for a moment, why would those muscles be so much bigger? then it hit me, when they constrict their prey, they coil with that first third, so it is only logical that they would be bigger to get that job done. I thought it was incredible, and never really thought about those muscles being larger, or stronger than the others.

Just thought that you all may find that a little bit interesting.

~Mike

yeah thats interesting.i'd like to see the inside of a ball python sometime.

It probably looks a lot like this, only smaller. Follow the link in this thread:

http://www.ball-pythons.net/forums/s...ad.php?t=38456

yeah i saw those a while back...*shivers*...still makes my skin crawl seeing those pics.

I was fascinated by it...my girlfriend is taking gross human anatomy right now in pharmacy school, she looked over that thread and mentioned how similar their inner workings looked compared to our own. I think the study of anatomy is also very humbling...illustrates how fragile life really is.

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Originally Posted by Snakeman

yeah thats interesting.i'd like to see the inside of a ball python sometime.

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ask for the VPI Pythons of the World Vol 2 for the holidays :) There are a bunch dissection photos.

I'd like to see a pic of the finished skeleton once its all set up.

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Originally Posted by wildlifewarrior

Well today i got to see.

I work at a museum were i prepare skeletons for the collection.
~Mike

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Do you use dermstid beetles to prepare the skeletons?

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Originally Posted by Schlyne

Do you use dermstid beetles to prepare the skeletons?

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I was wondering the same thing.. years ago, one of our BPs got out and died on our basement; I really really wanted to preserve her somehow (at least her skeleton) but I didn't know how or where to begin. It would be awesome to learn how this is done.

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Originally Posted by Schlyne

Do you use dermstid beetles to prepare the skeletons?

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Yea we use them we have a good sized colony in a pressurized (sp?) room so that the bugs if they do get out have trouble geting out of the room. Sometimes we rot-prep the specimen, which is fairly self explanitory, stick them in a tub of water and wait, let me tell you that is a STINKY job.

Griggs -
I accutally made a prep of one of my boas that had died. came out AWSOME!! I'll try to get some pics in about 2-3 weeks when it's done ;)

Elevatethis -
Yea that link is very similar, but it doesn't show the amount of muscle on the inside of the ribcage of that first third of the body. But that is an awsome awsome link, thanks for reposting that.

~mike