Snakes and Stones Pr. 2

[Lord Sorril]

My first two clutches are out and my remaining 17 clutches are all holding strong.

Let the 2026 Snakes and Stones photos begin!

Photo #576

BP = 66% Het Gravel or Yellowbelly
I've been trying to study the visual difference between Gravel and Yellow Belly in my population.
I think I'm starting to get a good idea. I would guess this one is Het Gravel.

Stone = Dyed Brazilian Agate (this was formerly a broken bookend-I cut off the lower portion which was in bad shape-and tumbled/polished the top)

The polish is mirror, but since the stone is slightly translucent you can see into it a small amount from the camera flash and see some impact fractures.
You can't see them with your eyes under normal lighting.

[Bogertophis]

Snake & the stone are both really nice!

[Lord Sorril]

Photo #577

BP = Pastel/66% Het for Gravel or Yellow Belly (I'd bet Het YB on this one)
The stone is a piece of local Quartzite.
I know that in different parts of the USA there are some really varied Quartzites...but this is what we have in Massachusetts lol...

[Lord Sorril]

Photo #578

In-Shed BP = 66% Het for Gravel or Yellowbelly (I'd guess Het for Gravel)
Stone = Montana Agate (Again the stone is translucent so you can see internal fractures)
Stone Backlit:

[EL-Ziggy]

Beautiful snakes and amazing stones Sorril.

[Lord Sorril]

Beautiful snakes and amazing stones Sorril.

Thanks! I love your photos of your carpet pythons, I think they are awesome!

Back in the day, I considered keeping exclusively one of the following: Blood Pythons, Woma Pythons, Carpet Pythons, or Ball Pythons. Ball pythons won out for me just because of the sheer variety of color/pattern morphs available...I think Carpet Pythons are beautiful though...they were a close second.

Photo #579

BP = Het Piebald (I had low odds of producing a single gene Het from the parental cross...but ok...)
Stone = King Cobra Jasper
Fun Fact: King Cobra Jasper is from India and gets its name due to that it is often found in areas with high populations of King Cobras.

[Lord Sorril]

My clutch #3 was a proof breed: Hidden Gene Woma/Lesser/Het for Gravel or Yellow Belly x Ivory/Possible Spider

I have enough offspring now to ID the parents: HGW/Lesser/Yellow Belly (no surprise) x Ivory/Spider
I'm starting to feel pretty confident that I can visually ID Gravel vs. Yellow Belly now.

I can't find any clear information online if HGW + Spider together truly form a lethal combo.
In the event I produce any HGW/Spider morphs: I will keep you updated.
Though...I'm not sure what they are supposed to look like....Anyone got any links to images of HGW/Spiders?

[Lord Sorril]

Photo #580

BP = 66% Het Gravel or Yellowbelly (I'd guess neither)
Stone = Brazilian Agate

Breeders Note: My clutch #3 seems to having some difficulty with late stage hatching. Out of six eggs I have half the clutch out, and the other half is struggling.
I think cutting eggs is a rookie move if there is nothing wrong with them.
In this case: I cut a tiny 2mm notch in the top of each remaining egg. I won't cut more than that in any event.

[Lord Sorril]

Breeding ball pythons isn't all fancy morphs and sunshine...

My three remaining eggs from Clutch #3 appeared to have died.
I know most people would discard them without checking, however, that seems like a waste-and accomplishes nothing. I got my gloves dirty and took apart the eggs to examine the issue.

All 3 embryos had reached ~40 days of developmental growth and then all growth ceased completely, nearly all absorption from the yolk stopped. I know that the embryos were still alive into the 60-70 day range because I could poke the eggs and feel them move.

All of them are solid white with one of them having a near invisible Spider/HGW confused patterning.

One of the embryos is still technically 'alive', however, without being able to absorb the yolk it cannot reach full development. It seems impossible that it will survive. I will attempt to maintain it in optimal conditions for a short of period of time to find out if the primary lung is functional-and if this creates any form of improvement.

I did not feel the need to necropsy the two dead embryos because it appears they are in nearly mint condition. This appears to be a purely developmental obstacle. With such a small data set I can't say with certainty that Spider/HGW is embryonic lethal, but my evidence strongly supports that conclusion.

I took some photos for my records, but I think they are graphic and inappropriate for this thread.
If you would like to see them: You are welcome to message me in private--and I can send them to you.

[Bogertophis]

Breeding animals is definitely not all "sunshine"...it does sound suspiciously like a genetic issue. Better luck next time.