Rootbeers hatching

[vanderkm]

The clutch from this pair - a male creamsicle and a female great plains ratsnake


were eggs that were about 3 times the size of our cornsnake eggs this year.

They started to pip last week and 10 eggs produed 2 males, 8 females - all absolutely huge!




Many were blue within a day of hatching like the one in the back here -



With a 4 week old creamsicle corn for size comparison - heads of these hatchlings are twice the size of a month old corn, and body is at least three times the thickness - amazing little monsters - and they are aggressive too!


mary v.

[BoidKeeper]

Nice stuff! Are there rootbeer corns too or is a rootbeer a rootbeer? I've heard of rootbeer corns. Are they the same as you have here? If so I didn't know they were a hybrid because I've only ever heard them called rootbeer corns.
Congrats,
Trevor

[Simon]

Congrats on the hatchlings~!!
Especially those huge ones.....man.....
Lovely looking snakes~

[TheRedDragon]

They look awesome! Congratulations, and good luck with the fiesty little ones.

[bighillreptiles]

send them to me <ary i want them ,LOL Paul

[bighillreptiles]

Sorey i hit the rong button to soon LOL love the looks of them Mary

[vanderkm]

Trevor - rootbeers are same as rootbeer corns and they are an intergrade (hybrid now that great plains rats and corns are different species in the new classification). They are essentially the normal color variation of a creamsicle corn - should be about 50% GPR and 50% corn, but in many instances they are higher percentage corn (people breed creamsicles back to corns and get some normal colored ones). These are likely between 25-50% corn - don't know the percentage corn in my creamsicle but if I estimate he is 50% corn then these babies are 75% GPR. They certainly resemble GPR more, but there are definate brownish red tones to the saddles - rootbeers usually have less red than corns, just as the albino version - creamsicles are more orange than red.

Will be interesting to see how these guys age and their color changes. A few have been reserved for but I am keeping the rest. Very interesting head markings on many - a real bald head pattern with very few markings in a couple.

I never believed GPR and corns were substantially different until seeing these eggs and then the babies - they are very different from corns.

mary v.

[BoidKeeper]

Thanks for the clarification.
Cheers,
Trevor

[dave68]

Wow that's pretty crazy stuff! I always thought great plains were smaller than corns, but obviously not eh! Congrats on those awesome babies Mary!!

Dave

[Matt.B]

shouldnt this be in the general colubrid forums? ahh whatever who cares there absolutly beautiful!!! good luck with them

[vanderkm]

Dave - I think some GPRats at maturity are shorter than the longest corns, but definately have a tendency to be thicker bodied.

Matt - I sort of agree - now that they are officially hybrids and not intergrades - I guess that they don't belong in the cornsnake forum and should be in general colubrids - hard to know how to deal with these guys - I left them here for now - the corn people are the ones most likely to be interested in them and not all corn people browse the general colubrid column - the joys of categories!!

I agree - they are neat looking - will be much better once they have shed - pretty muddy looking now.

thanks,

mary v.

[Scales Zoo]

So, since they are all het for amel or creamsicle, if you bred them back to one another you should get creamsicles that have more GPR traits than corn.

Have you ever seen pictures of those?

Cool project!

Ryan

[vanderkm]

Thanks Ryan - will definately get creamsicles in the F2 from these - not many pics available of any cream projects - no one seems to work much with them specifically - especially since butter appeared in corns.

I will be doing F2 with these - they will be the same percentage GPR and corn as the F1 - but expect some more diversity as there is genetic sorting - so hope to select out what I am looking for - those with clear orange color and no white.

I am also taking the girls from this breeding back to my smaller male creamsicle to get back toward the 50/50 percentage and hope to get the creamsicle color more like his soft, light orange with more contrast between saddle and background but keep the white trim out of them - but will be interesting to see how these sort out - how much variation I get in them.

Glad you and Sheila got a chance in Red Deer to see those creamsicles I got from you now that they are all grown up. It will turn into a fun project - definately my favorite corns!

mary v.

[Invictus]

Those look incredible Mary! I wouldn't mind getting my hands on a few of those...

[dia]

Stunning creatures!