What Do You Think of This Super Pastel

[BPGuy]

I believe what she's saying is that the pastel gene has been bred out by a lot of people. Some people started with sub-par single gene pastels and bred them to dark normals or other sub-par quality genes. These sub-par parents will generally produce sub-par offspring. So, if the person who bred the snake in question is working with two sub-par single gene pastels, that the single gene pastel offspring would also likely be sub-par. If the breeder is producing sub-par pastels, it is likely that if they hit the super, it would also be of sub-par quality. So, it's possible that this is a super pastel created by two sub-par single gene pastels, which results in a sub-par super that others might mistake as a single gene pastel.

Clear as mud now?

Short version... It's possible that this is a low quality super produced by low quality pastels...

Assuming the parents of the snake in question were both pastels, is there anyway of knowing for certain whether we are looking at a super or just a regular pastel short of breeding the snake? (I'm guessing the answer is "no," but I want to be sure.)

[MarkS]

Assuming the parents of the snake in question were both pastels, is there anyway of knowing for certain whether we are looking at a super or just a regular pastel short of breeding the snake? (I'm guessing the answer is "no," but I want to be sure.)

All 'super' means is that it's a homozygous pastel. There is no implied guarantee of the quality. Pastels are probably one of the most mass produced morphs in existence. There was a time not so long ago where pastels were bred to every normal female a breeder could lay their hands on regardless of looks because every one of them was worth some big money. There are a LOT of pastels and super pastels out there that do NOT look nice and bright and blindingly yellow like the pictures you will see people posting on line. I'm willing to bet that a lot of the people who are claiming that it's not a super have not produced very many pastels or super pastels themselves. Personally I think if the breeder told you it's a super pastel, I see no reason to disbelieve him/her.

[BPGuy]

All 'super' means is that it's a homozygous pastel. There is no implied guarantee of the quality. Pastels are probably one of the most mass produced morphs in existence. There was a time not so long ago where pastels were bred to every normal female a breeder could lay their hands on regardless of looks because every one of them was worth some big money. There are a LOT of pastels and super pastels out there that do NOT look nice and bright and blindingly yellow like the pictures you will see people posting on line. I'm willing to bet that a lot of the people who are claiming that it's not a super have not produced very many pastels or super pastels themselves. Personally I think if the breeder told you it's a super pastel, I see no reason to disbelieve him/her.

It's sounding to me that, absent actually breeding the snake (or running a DNA test ), determining whether it is a regular pastel or a super is somewhat subjective, which is a bit discomforting given the significant price difference between a regular pastel and a super.