Why Is The Bamboo Morph Not Popular?

I’ll start out by saying, I love the bamboo morph. I think the reason that not as many breeders are working with it is the same reason why I as a breeder have chose not to include it in my projects, there just isn’t many ways to improve it if any. The original bamboo is what I think looks best. I have not seen any combos that I’ve actually liked better than the original so that makes it hard to have goals as a breeder with a gene that is difficult to improve with the addition of more genes. I’ve talked with a few local breeders when I was first looking into bamboo and they basically chose not to work with it for the same reason but they were a little more harsh about what they thought about what the gene does to other genes. But they do have a point, the bamboo gene has a strong influence in combos and so they all look similar to the original bamboo but not near as nice. So if you were looking for a pet snake, I think the bamboo is a great choice, it’s beautiful and nothing else looks like it. It may not be the best choice as a breeder though as a lot of the combos don’t add much interest and most become less visually pleasing at least imo. Bright and flashy seems to pull a lot more interest and although the bamboo has an amazing pattern, it is not bright and flashy and only gets duller with the addition of more genes.

Well I'd have to agree that the Bamboo gene is pretty dominant when it comes to combos and tends to overpower a lot of stuff. I'd say the base morph is similar to the Spider gene in appearance but that's where the similarity ends, in combos it's completely different. However, I like the fact that it's allelic to other BEL complexes such as Lesser, Mojave, Russo, etc.... A Bamboo Lesser BEL would make no normals at all and act as a super.

Here are some of my favorite Bamboo combos that I've seen so far:

Leopard Pastel Bamboo:
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...439a6c5e77.jpg

Bamboo Pinstripe:
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...0bbfb6617c.jpg

Bamboo Calico:
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...26c70688f8.jpg

Pastel Spider Bamboo:
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...f38fa9efe5.jpg

Pastel Spider Sugar Bamboo:
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...41deb0265f.jpg

Bamboo Super Enchi:
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...f77b6f0483.jpg

Ultramel Bamboo:
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...01de7ce489.jpg

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Originally Posted by Caali

I've been wondering why the Bamboo ball pythons are not as popular as many of the other morphs. When I first decided to get a ball python, I actually wanted a Bamboo ball python but couldn't find even one (there were very few from very sketchy breeder but I didn't want to buy from them since I've heard a lot of bad things).
Personally I find the Bamboo morph very appealing and I think there are some beautiful combos out there. So to any breeders or just ball python lovers: Is there any specific reason why Bamboos are not that liked? Is breeding difficult or are the combos just not special? Is the maybe that they're just not in demand?
I'd love to hear opinions.

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I was on the fence at first with the bamboo because of the price, then when I had the opportunity to buy one I did not hesitate. Still trying to make more combos, but can't just throw any mix. A morph is only as good as the promotion it can get.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...542a7f6155.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...ef266d8b83.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...9be789b0e9.jpg

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Quote:

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Originally Posted by giantdwarf

I was on the fence at first with the bamboo because of the price, then when I had the opportunity to buy one I did not hesitate. Still trying to make more combos, but can't just throw any mix. A morph is only as good as the promotion it can get.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...542a7f6155.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...ef266d8b83.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...9be789b0e9.jpg

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Bamboo Enchi Phantom, Bamboo paradox, Bamboo Spinnerblast and Bamboo Pinstripe i have produced https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...cb8c877f5b.jpg

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Quote:

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Originally Posted by giantdwarf

Bamboo Enchi Phantom, Bamboo paradox, Bamboo Spinnerblast and Bamboo Pinstripe i have produced https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...cb8c877f5b.jpg

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Absolutely stunning animals :o

I absolutely love Bamboo, and am so excited to work with it. I managed to snag a Bamboo girl for a steal at my local show this weekend, I absolutely love what it does in most combos.

Absolutely beautiful animals being posted in this thread, definitely gives some solid motivation for some future projects!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Eric Alan

Also, Bob's a guy, so... more than just a new kitty calendar required. :P

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Lol

Since this thread has been bumped I'll share my change of heart. I decided to add bamboo to my desert ghost project, if there is one morph that could undoubtedly improve bamboo, it's desert ghost. It will keep it's incredible pattern and color but just brighten it and increase its contrast. I can not wait to see what it looks like! Here's my bamboo 100% het desert ghost girl.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...854ab48105.jpg

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Quote:

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Originally Posted by rufretic

Since this thread has been bumped I'll share my change of heart. I decided to add bamboo to my desert ghost project, if there is one morph that could undoubtedly improve bamboo, it's desert ghost. It will keep it's incredible pattern and color but just brighten it and increase its contrast. I can not wait to see what it looks like! Here's my bamboo 100% het desert ghost girl.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...854ab48105.jpg

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I can't wait to see what you get! I agree that a combo of DG and bamboo will make some killer babies! Good luck! DG is such an underrated morph IMO

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I'm just doing a Bamboo Enchi x Pastel Calico pairing this year. I am thinking of holding back a female or two to eventually work into my Ultramel projects.