Irian Jaya carpet?

[Jakeseals]

I generally don't keep captives but I bought a Carpet Python last Saturday at an expo. He was labled: Irian Jaya Carpet Python. I am wondering if I can expect it to be pure Irian Jaya, or are most of them muts?

I'll post some photos when I get them up.

[Colin Vestrand]

well, IJ's are more likely to be pure than jungles or coastals would be... so who knows... post some pics up though and i bet we can give ya a good idea... or find out who bred it if possible.

[Jakeseals]

Here is a photo. Does he look pure bred?

[Colin Vestrand]

well, no... not to me. looks like a jag sib or something... it's hard to tell when they're young, and without seeing the head. the labial scales really tell the story. looks nice though, whatever he may be.
are you able to contact the breeder?

[spix14]

well, no... not to me. looks like a jag sib or something... it's hard to tell when they're young, and without seeing the head. the labial scales really tell the story. looks nice though, whatever he may be.
are you able to contact the breeder?

What is it about the labial scales that gives it away? I have a pair that I bought as IJs but they seem questionable.

[MPenn]

One big way to answer your question is, who did you buy them from? Was the seller the producer or a wholesaler?
Sometimes it is really hard to nail it down to a 100% certainity of purity. All we can do is give you an educated guess.

I agree with Colin. It has some coastal influence in it.

It always amazes me how these type of threads come up but the seller's name is not mentioned.
A word of advice: If you question the animal and/or the seller/producer, don't buy it if you are looking for a pure IJ, coastal, jungle, etc. There are several high quality honest breeders that produce pure specimens and will bank their reputation on it.

If you bought it as a pet, then the purity of the animal has no consequence. If however, you bought it as a future breeder, it would have been a good idea to have done your research first.

At the end of the day, it is a carpet python and hence, I am sure you will enjoy interacting with him/her.

[Colin Vestrand]

What is it about the labial scales that gives it away? I have a pair that I bought as IJs but they seem questionable.

well, usually a pure coastal will have very little-to-no black dashes on the lower labial scales and have little or no black on the heat pits in the lower jaw. there are a couple other more subtle markings, but you can kinda tell sometimes if an animal is a jag sib or a pure coastal or IJ by seeing the head. it's not 100%, just another piece to the puzzle.

[Jakeseals]

I'll never breed this animal, but I strongly dislike morphs and mixed breeds. I just wanted a natural looking animal to display in my home. If he has influence from other subspecies, so be it. He is a very interesting serpent. This is the first carpet python I've kept.

[bailey23]

no, he is not an IJ carpet pyton. trust me.