Quote Originally Posted by Quiet Tempest View Post
I've incubated jungle carpet eggs artificially but every ball python clutch I've had has been left with the mothers. I like the ease of maternal incubation and feel that the eggs have a better chance of survival with their mother rather than in an incubator. I have lost eggs in an incubator but have yet to lose any that remain with their mother. I'm hesitant to use incubators with pythons unless it's absolutely necessary. I read a study that concluded that artificially incubated eggs are more likely to suffer yolk dessication (solidified yolk is left in the egg at hatching) whereas maternally incubated eggs lose less water during the incubation period and tend to result in larger, more active neonates at hatching. The study definitely bolsters my opinion of maternal incubation.

http://www.rcreptiles.com/articles/w...their-eggs.pdf


It's entirely up to the keeper what method to use once you've got eggs, but for me this is the better choice.

They hardly provided perfect incubation conditions though did they

"The clutches left without maternal attendance were placed in boxes (50 × 50 × 20 cm)
filled with wood shavings. The eggs were placed in the middle of each box, close to the
surface, and were covered by a thin layer of shavings. Similar artificial incubators are used at
TOGANIM. However, the room we used was large and well ventilated, while local farmers
incubate the eggs in small and closed rooms. Despite the fact that the boxes we used were
watered once a week to keep the uppermost shavings damp, the humidity (not measured)
may have fallen below 100% at times."