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Lan Fan the Japanese Rat Snake
I went to a reptile show today and came home with this tiny, gorgeous little girl.
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/YCRZw2j.jpg
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/r0UXtGE.jpg
The breeder said she is two months old, and feeding on pinky mice. They listed her as a "blue" variety, which I believe means the Kunashir island locale, but since they didn't list her that way I can't confirm it. She is currently in her quarantine enclosure noodling about. She is a zoomer!
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/AgAKmZY.jpg
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/wQrzqrC.jpg
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/x2LKe9k.jpg
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/wl7JZgX.jpg
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Very cool...do keep us updated on her progress. Right now her color reminds of the Baird's rat snakes I used to have, but personality is a world apart, I'm sure. ;)
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Wow great new pick up! Looking forward to seeing more pics of her! Now we both have old world rat snake girls :P Also love the FMA name!
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Re: Lan Fan the Japanese Rat Snake
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bogertophis
Very cool...do keep us updated on her progress. Right now her color reminds of the Baird's rat snakes I used to have, but personality is a world apart, I'm sure. ;)
I've only handled her briefly, to place her in her enclosure, but she was pretty on the move. No biting so far, though she's pretty good at posturing. She seems more like a runner over a biter. As I've never had a baird's, I'm not sure what they're like personality-wise.
Quote:
Originally Posted by MissterDog
Wow great new pick up! Looking forward to seeing more pics of her! Now we both have old world rat snake girls :P Also love the FMA name!
Thanks! Yeah, I went in looking for a Russian rat snake, and this girl caught my eye. I figured you'd get the reference :).
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Starscream
... I've never had a baird's, I'm not sure what they're like personality-wise...
Baird's rat snakes are quite mellow...they get up to about 6' eventually, but friendly, easily-handled pets. Used to take mine to "meet & greet" snake programs.
While their overall color is shades of silvery-gray, they have variable amounts of yellows or oranges between their scales...always reminded me of an impressionist painting. They climb well & enjoy branches too. Not biters.
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Re: Lan Fan the Japanese Rat Snake
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bogertophis
Baird's rat snakes are quite mellow...they get up to about 6' eventually, but friendly, easily-handled pets. Used to take mine to "meet & greet" snake programs.
While their overall color is shades of silvery-gray, they have variable amounts of yellows or oranges between their scales...always reminded me of an impressionist painting. They climb well & enjoy branches too. Not biters.
They're on my list of future snakes, so it's good to hear that they're one of the more mellow species.
From anecdotes online, it seems that Japanese rat snakes are flighty when young (which makes sense) and become a lot more mellow with age and handling. I know not to judge her attitude towards handling based off a single care in my care; she did just get hauled to an expo, displayed for hundreds of people, and then ferried home with two Big Warm Predators who May Or May Not eat her.
Even so, she's already incredibly curious, and is constantly watching me as she moves around her enclosure. A lot different than a ball python, that's for sure.
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Re: Lan Fan the Japanese Rat Snake
Congratulations on your tiny new addition! I’m always amazed at how tiny the different rat snakes are to start...and zoomy is right. :D
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Re: Lan Fan the Japanese Rat Snake
Quote:
Originally Posted by Starscream
They're on my list of future snakes, so it's good to hear that they're one of the more mellow species.
From anecdotes online, it seems that Japanese rat snakes are flighty when young (which makes sense) and become a lot more mellow with age and handling. I know not to judge her attitude towards handling based off a single care in my care; she did just get hauled to an expo, displayed for hundreds of people, and then ferried home with two Big Warm Predators who May Or May Not eat her.
Even so, she's already incredibly curious, and is constantly watching me as she moves around her enclosure. A lot different than a ball python, that's for sure.
I agree, you can't blame a snake that's been hauled to an expo & is now in a new home. Great that she's already curious...that's what I love about rat snakes...they're
watching me, not hiding. (except for my silly Korean rat snake- I'm pretty sure he's from another planet...)
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Great news! She took a f/t pinky, but only after wiggling it in her face :rolleyes:. Off to a great start already :).
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Tiny but precious "cargo" there...I love watching hatchlings grow from tiny 'worms' to big personable adults.
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Re: Lan Fan the Japanese Rat Snake
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bogertophis
Tiny but precious "cargo" there...I love watching hatchlings grow from tiny 'worms' to big personable adults.
For real... She's so tiny I'm almost afraid to hold her haha.
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Re: Lan Fan the Japanese Rat Snake
Quote:
Originally Posted by Starscream
For real... She's so tiny I'm almost afraid to hold her haha.
Haha I can 100% relate to this with Kallari!
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Re: Lan Fan the Japanese Rat Snake
A VBB baby is more greenish as a baby.
https://78.media.tumblr.com/be470fbf...ribzo2_500.jpg
Then they color transition as an adult.
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...bluebeauty.jpg
Either way your animal is great looking and should make a fun pet.
Does she shake her tail when she is trying to get you to leave her alone. Is so cool to see the rattle snake impression for sure.
EDIT: I apologize. You said was a Japanese rat snake blue kind.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/3Uj9Rn2CfzM/maxresdefault.jpg
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Re: Lan Fan the Japanese Rat Snake
Quote:
Originally Posted by Skyrivers
I do want a Vietnamese blue beauty someday, too! Way later, though; they get twice as big as Japanese rat snakes. Fun fact: a German zoo produced offspring between a Japanese rat snake and a Russian rat snake that looked pretty similar to a beauty snake.
She hasn't rattled her tail yet. She either balls up really tight, or tries to dart towards an escape. Most of the time she's running around and looking for an angle to watch me from lol.
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Re: Lan Fan the Japanese Rat Snake
Quote:
Originally Posted by Starscream
I do want a Vietnamese blue beauty someday, too! Way later, though; they get twice as big as Japanese rat snakes. Fun fact: a German zoo produced offspring between a Japanese rat snake and a Russian rat snake that looked pretty similar to a beauty snake.
She hasn't rattled her tail yet. She either balls up really tight, or tries to dart towards an escape. Most of the time she's running around and looking for an angle to watch me from lol.
Haha Vbb are on my list too! Also going to be a while until I get one but for now I'm just settling on a tattoo of one haha. That hybrid sounds really cool!
I'm so looking forward to more progress pics of your new girl! How are you liking have an active colubrid? :) I'm not too familiar with japanese rat snakes at all, are they similar in care and size to russian rat snakes?
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Re: Lan Fan the Japanese Rat Snake
Quote:
Originally Posted by MissterDog
Haha Vbb are on my list too! Also going to be a while until I get one but for now I'm just settling on a tattoo of one haha. That hybrid sounds really cool!
I'm so looking forward to more progress pics of your new girl! How are you liking have an active colubrid? :) I'm not too familiar with japanese rat snakes at all, are they similar in care and size to russian rat snakes?
I can't wait to see your tattoo! I've considered a few snake ones myself, but seeing as I haven't even gotten my first one yet, just gonna put those plans on hold for now lol.
It's really fun! She'd always out and about, until I get to close to her tub, in which case she'll then dart for a hiding spot. From what I understand they reach similar lengths, though japanese rats aren't as heavy-bodied, and have special adaptations for eating eggs. I keep her hot spot a little warmer than I would a russian.
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I finally managed some handling pictures! So far she very much requires two hands to treadmill her during sessions, but she held still just long enough for me to get these.
https://i.imgur.com/7MNeEr2.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/nzeYL2f.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/FFa0hsx.jpg
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Soooo cool! I can't wait to see her grow! Her size reminds me of my Noodle when I got her. They grow fast!
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What a beautiful little face she's got. Colubrids (& especially rat snakes) are just fun, I love them all...
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Re: Lan Fan the Japanese Rat Snake
Quote:
Originally Posted by FollowTheSun
Soooo cool! I can't wait to see her grow! Her size reminds me of my Noodle when I got her. They grow fast!
I hope so; while I'm enjoying how cute she is this small, I will admit that her current size does make me nervous during handling. My hands aren't exactly the steadiest lol.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bogertophis
What a beautiful little face she's got. Colubrids (& especially rat snakes) are just fun, I love them all...
Her face is so cute! And her head is surprisingly large compared to her body, at least to me. Makes me wonder if that's part of the egg-eating thing. She's definitely fun to watch!
Speaking of eggs, I can't seem to find any small enough for her current size, so I guess she'll have to wait for some variety until she's a little bigger. Smallest I've found are quail eggs, and they're still pretty big when compared to Lan Fan.
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This photo makes it look like Lan Fan was basking, but she just paused when I got close to her tub.
https://i.imgur.com/yn3Fftd.jpg
I'm keeping the handling sessions short, and putting her back home after she calms down.
https://i.imgur.com/aWoVQW0.jpg?1
https://i.imgur.com/b80Sv2n.jpg?1
https://i.imgur.com/oQ5Qdn8.jpg?1
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I weighed Lan Fan this week, and in a month she's gained.... drum roll.... 1 gram! :fest2:. Now 20, was 19. Doesn't seem like much, but I do have to remind myself that that's a 20th of her weight. I'm also going to be upping her prey size from 2 pinky mice to a fuzzy next feeding. She hasn't gone into shed with me yet, so either she shed recently with the breeder or she needs to be upsized a bit. That does leave me with some leftover pinky mice that I don't really know what to do with. Seems like a shame to toss them, but it can't be helped.
I had her out for a short handling session today. She does well after being taken out of her enclosure, but the being taken out and the minute or so after are pretty rough for her. The fact that I have to come at her from above, due to the nature of her current enclosure, definitely isn't helping her get used to being taken out, as she very much sees me as a predator until she's had time to calm down a bit. That will hopefully change with time and persistence.
Photos from handling:
https://i.imgur.com/kalHvya.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/LbUCrm4.jpg
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Re: Lan Fan the Japanese Rat Snake
Such a pretty girl! I love her coloration. Will that change as she grows or does it stay pretty similar to how she looks now?
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I personally wouldn't toss out the pinkies...just feed them as a bonus after she's on fuzzies for a while (1 of each) after she's used to the fuzzy size.
She's coming right along...so cute!
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Re: Lan Fan the Japanese Rat Snake
Quote:
Originally Posted by Dianne
Such a pretty girl! I love her coloration. Will that change as she grows or does it stay pretty similar to how she looks now?
Thanks! From what I understand, most Japanese rat snakes turn an olive color with a grey-ish head. They seem to lose the block shapes and get more stripey. As Lan Fan was supposedly from a "blue" line, she will probably be blue around the head and olive elsewhere. If I'm really lucky, she might even be blue all over, but I'm not getting my hopes up yet.
Here's some links to someone else's adults. I apologize if they don't work -- they used photobucket, which is fickle at times about photos :/. But if they do show, you can see the variety across the board for these guys.
http://i881.photobucket.com/albums/a...ssie251110.jpg
http://i881.photobucket.com/albums/a...xter080112.jpg
https://s881.photobucket.com/user/ac...lay0801123.jpg
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bogertophis
I personally wouldn't toss out the pinkies...just feed them as a bonus after she's on fuzzies for a while (1 of each) after she's used to the fuzzy size.
She's coming right along...so cute!
I was actually considering feeding a single one off later in the week, sort of like a snack? She seems to have an incredibly fast metabolism, at least in comparison to what I'm used to. I could also do your suggestion, of course! Depends on how fast she grows I guess, haha.
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Re: Lan Fan the Japanese Rat Snake
Quote:
Originally Posted by Starscream
Her pattern now looks almost like a tapestry, love the look. Thanks for the links, very cool looking adults. I haven’t kept any colubrids other than corn snakes and a grey rat snake, though a friend used to have kings and African house snakes that I snake-sat. Thanks to this site, I’m learning about all kinds of new species and morphs. :D
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You can do that too..."snake snacks"! :D Colubrids have a fast metabolism, yes, but pinkies are not at all "filling" either. ;)
Those links you posted above...the first one really reminds me of Baird's rat snakes (a U.S. species, very docile). Baird's colors are variable too, silver-to-gray
with yellow or orange between the scales. (they also change appearance from when they're hatchlings) I look forward to seeing your little one grow. :gj:
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Re: Lan Fan the Japanese Rat Snake
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bogertophis
You can do that too..."snake snacks"! :D Colubrids have a fast metabolism, yes, but pinkies are not at all "filling" either. ;)
Those links you posted above...the first one really reminds me of Baird's rat snakes (a U.S. species, very docile). Baird's colors are variable too, silver-to-gray
with yellow or orange between the scales. (they also change appearance from when they're hatchlings) I look forward to seeing your little one grow. :gj:
Yeah, I hear they're mostly "water weight". Hopefully the push to fuzzies will give her a little growth spurt.
Baird's are gorgeous snakes! All the pretty ones seem to start off with an "ugly duckling" phase :rolleyes:. Still gorgeous to me even as babies, though!
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Lan Fan is now in her grow-out tub! It should last her until I can build a permanent enclosure. I let her settle for a few days, and fed her this morning.
Some exploring pics from the first day.
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/MMWOhNA.jpg
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/3Zs4mIW.jpg
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/OSR2Cao.jpg
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/c6y6P8i.jpg
https://scontent-ort2-1.cdninstagram...ninstagram.com
I caught her out basking before class this morning. Her eyes seemed a little cloudy, but with how much she's faked me out so far (her belly is apparently constantly tinted pink-ish brown), I don't know if that was just the lighting or she's actually starting to go into a shed cycle.
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/aomj4p7.jpg
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/kYgVB8f.jpg
The eating. These fuzzies seems huge compared to her.
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/zhRhCDG.jpg
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/D027MBH.jpg
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She really looks like she's enjoying her branches & all. :gj:
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Re: Lan Fan the Japanese Rat Snake
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bogertophis
She really looks like she's enjoying her branches & all. :gj:
Haha yeah, she is all about that climbing life. She's been digging some, too, which is fun to see on occasion.
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She loves hugging those branches...;) Blends right in, great place for hunting when clear-eyed.
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Lan Fan shed on Monday, but only after eating three little pinks. It was a bit funny; she was on a branch, minding her own business but hadn't seemed to get up the motivation to shed yet. Once she'd eaten, she immediately set out getting her shed off. It was perfect and in one piece, but she wrapped it around some plants and branches, and I accidentally broke it when i was trying to remove it. :/. Maybe next time.
Here she is, two days later. I think her pattern is already beginning to recede, and there is a definite contrast of olive on her body and a greyish-blue on her head. She's grown, for sure.
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/E7nHbLW.jpg
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It's been a few minutes since my last update. Lan Fan is doing well, but I've been too busy to really handle her much. Hopefully when life calms down a bit I can start working with her in earnest again. In the meantime, pictures!
A couple weeks ago I popped open her tub and kept an eye on her. The idea was to get her used to the tub lid opening and nothing happening to her; she reacted by doing a few tentative laps around the cold side of her tub.
https://i.imgur.com/NdCP1Bn.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/iXwU8ic.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/ltIAzf4.jpg
Today, I caught her basking beneath her UVB bulb. Maybe she's approaching shed; she was this dark in color just before she entered her last shed cycle.
https://i.imgur.com/M8lrv9S.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/V4bc8JG.jpg
She's so little, it's ridiculous(ly adorable).
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Re: Lan Fan the Japanese Rat Snake
Lan Fan's grown a lot here, and we've been making careful baby steps with her tolerance to handling. She calms down a lot faster once removed from her tub, though she's still incredibly spastic during removal. She's about 40 grams now, which is double what she was when I picked her up in February.
She tail-rattles fairly often, and while it means she's scared and trying to draw attention away from her head, it is terribly cute.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...4c08e8e8ec.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...8d71796511.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...0354bfcd57.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...a580253ad7.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...1124ce9dae.jpg
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Re: Lan Fan the Japanese Rat Snake
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Looks like you're getting there. She reminds me of my Korean rat snake (greenish dorsal scales & yellow underside), but my male has never warmed up to handling-
he's flighty like a racer. Oh well, can't win 'em all. :rolleyes: At least he's brave enough to grab f/t prey from tongs now, I don't have to leave it on his "door-step", turn out
the lights & leave the room any more. In fact, in summer he comes after the tongs too, now. :D
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Re: Lan Fan the Japanese Rat Snake
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bogertophis
Looks like you're getting there. She reminds me of my Korean rat snake (greenish dorsal scales & yellow underside), but my male has never warmed up to handling-
he's flighty like a racer. Oh well, can't win 'em all. :rolleyes: At least he's brave enough to grab f/t prey from tongs now, I don't have to leave it on his "door-step", turn out
the lights & leave the room any more. In fact, in summer he comes after the tongs too, now. :D
We're still in the very early stages color-wise; I don't really expect her to change much until closer to the year mark. We'll see lol. Her belly is actually constantly pink, but in a pretty opalescent way, it just doesn't photograph well.
She's always been eager to eat from tongs, thankfully. I got a feeding video a few weeks ago that I don't think I shared here.
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Re: Lan Fan the Japanese Rat Snake
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Gosh, she's so beautiful!
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Re: Lan Fan the Japanese Rat Snake
Quote:
Originally Posted by RickyNY
Gosh, she's so beautiful!
Thank you! Her head is genuinely blue now, but for some reason it doesn't seem to show in photos well.
Trying to water plants in here, meanwhile Lan Fan:https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...77abffb8b6.jpg
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Re: Lan Fan the Japanese Rat Snake
I try to handle Lan Fan at least once a week; she's not particularly easy to get out of her tub, especially with how long she's getting, and she has always been resistant of getting out at first. She calms down afterwards, but the entire removal process is pretty stressful. I'm trying to encourage her to investigate my hand and the open tub when I do cage maintenance as I did with Mazikeen, but it's slow-going with how skittish she is. She is quickly approaching 3 feet, which is insane considering she's only a tiny 54 grams. So much noodly child.
Here's a video of a recent handling session -- probably the best one thus far -- where she's trying very hard to reach my elbow lmao: https://i.imgur.com/CmSt4rB.mp4 .
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/ScwSluR.jpg
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/Kz9UpSj.jpg
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...om/CmSt4rB.mp4
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Ha, that's a noodle-y rat snake for you...they can really hang on & climb with all that body length. She's cute!
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Re: Lan Fan the Japanese Rat Snake
I was able to get Lan Fan out for handling today - something I haven't been able to comfortably do since I moved back into my parent's place. Now I have my own house, and don't have to worry about my mom or her dog interrupting me.
No recent pictures- she is officially a two-hands-on-deck snake, and as she's over 3 foot long now and lightning fast, that's not exactly surprising. She's also starting to come into her blue coloration with full force. Her head, sides, and belly are bright, almost neon blue. Her back has turned a pretty eye-catching olive-green color, and I think she has some blue coming in between her "saddles" along her back.
She is exactly what I wanted when I looked into Japanese rat snakes, if a bit feistier than expected. Now that I have my own place, I'm going to work on getting her used to handling again and maybe get someone over to take pics while I'm at it.
I do have one picture, but it's hard to see how bright she is without natural sunlight. Getting some UVB. I just ordered a replacement bulb for her, so she'll get the full benefits of basking when that arrives.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/202...8fea8f5185.jpg
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Re: Lan Fan the Japanese Rat Snake
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Re: Lan Fan the Japanese Rat Snake
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