Robert:
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Category: Old Shop
Reverse Okeetee 02-19-13
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{simpleproduct:id=498}
Details
toDAY’s SNAKE of the DAY (Tue Feb. 19,2013)
#021913
Reverse Okeetee
Female
d.o.h. 2009
49″ long on Feb 19, 2013
$250.00 shipped
Comments: Superior color
This 49″ 2009 female Reverse Okeetee corn is a great breeder and produces very pure High White Reverse when bred to higher-white males. I love the green blotch margins and some of her progeny have demonstrated those features. Probably more than I think, but since the margins are white for up to a year after they hatch, I don’t keep enough of them to find out exactly how many of her progeny inherit that color.
~~~~~~~~~~~
Reverse Okeetee (aka: Amel Okeetee, Albino Okeetee)
Most Commonly Used Name: Reverse Okeetee
Mode of Genetic Inheritance: Recessive + Selective Variation
Most Commonly Used Name: Reverse Okeetee
Mode of Genetic Inheritance: Recessive + Selective Variation
Morph Type: Selective variant of single recessive mutation
Eye Color: Red pupils
Reverse Okeetees are variants of the basic Amel Mutation, so their only visual distinction from corns is their polygenetic color and pattern scheme. Genetically speaking, Reverse Okeetees are Amel corns that have been selectively bred to promote their target look (Highly saturated blotch colors, separated from clean and unspeckled ground coloration by prominent white blotch margins). Red or orange markings are not difficult to reproduce through generational line breeding, but the quality and size of the white blotch margins is often difficult to achieve, and sometimes difficult to maintain through subsequent generations. The degree of color purity in the orange background and red (or orange) markings have been enhanced via polygenetic traits, modified through selective promotion of only the best target phenotypes. Some will exhibit color “clutter” in these zones, but a distinction between Reverse Okeetees and most Amel corns should be a dramatic reduction in color “noise” — rendering richer colors of blotch and ground color zones.
What to expect:
Reverse Okeetees are one of the few corn snake mutations that change very little between neonate and adult, so expect some deeper color saturation throughout maturity. The often “neutrally colored” blotch margins turn bright white throughout maturity. I don’t recall ever seeing one that was completely devoid of color litter in the pattern and ground zones, but we’re getting closer to that with each generation. Some of the hatchlings displaying orange markings mature to have redder markings, and some of those starting with red markings change to orange, but approximately 75% of all our red ones stay red, and about the same percentage of the orange marked ones stay orange.
Common + 020513
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.
toDAY’s SNAKE of the DAY (Sun. Feb. 05,, 2013)
#020513
Comon corn Het Kastanie, Bloodred, Sunkissed
Male
d.o.h. 2010
48″ long on Feb. 4, 2013
Eating frozen/thawed adult mice
$200.00 shipped
This male is the result of pairing a Sunkissed mutant with a Kastanie Bloodred (aka: Rosy Bloodred). He’ll eatcha outta mouse and home. He loves frozen/thawed adult mice. He has been out of brumation now for nearly one week. He brumated from October 10, 2013 to January 31, 2013.
Tessera 02-20-13
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#022013
Tessera from Tessera parents
Female
d.o.h. 2010
34″ long on Feb. 20, 2013
34″ long on Feb. 20, 2013
$475.00 shipped
This 34″ long female Tessera is from a Tessera to Tessera pairing. Therefore, it is possible that she could be a homozygote (aka: Super-Form). When Super-Form Tesseras are bred to ANY other corn snake, 100% of the progeny will be Tesseras (plus whatever other mutations they commonly share but hide). This one is 50% possibly het for Amel and Caramel. She was brumated from November 4th last year to February 15, 2013. She is currently eating one frozen/thawed hopper to small adult mouse each week.
More about Tessera mutants ~~~~~~~~~~~~~>
Tessera (no aka)
Most Commonly Used Name: Tessera
Mode of Genetic Inheritance:Dominant
MorphType: Dominant to Wild-Type
Eye Color: BLACK pupil and ground-color matching iris
FIRST, what makes Tesseras so expensive? Other than appearance, the primary (and inherent) value of Tessera-type Corns is their mode of inheritance. Since they are dominant to wild type, pairing any Ultra Type that is a Visual Het to ANY corn snake (other than a Tessera-type) will render 50% Tessera mutants in the F1 (first) out-crossed generation. The results of pairing an Tessera homozygote with ANY corn snake (other than a Tessera-type) will render 100% Tessera mutants.
Anery Tesseras are virtually identical to exceptionally patterned Anery Striped Motleys in appearance, but that’s where the resemblance ends. The remarkably consistent Striped Motley-type pattern that derives from the base mutation, Tessera, is inherited dominantly. Hence, when you breed a Anery Tessera to a Anery, both Anerys and Anery Tesseras (approximately 50/50) will comprise the F1s (First Generation Progeny). No waiting one more generation to get pattern mutants, since Tessera is dominant to wild type.
What to expect:
At this early period in the Tessera’s resume, we still don’t know what phenotypic potentials exist. So far, the only behavior that is atypical for a corn snake mutation is that many of the non-mutant siblings of Tessera types seem to have enhanced pattern and color features. So far, I don’t see any hybrid markers, since the collateral sibling features to which I refer are – so far – in the realm of improving existing corn snake features (i.e. some non-Tesseras have better, brighter, cleaner, and/or more consistent colors and markings).
History of the Tessera Mutation:
In 2007, Graham Criglow asked KJ Lodrigue to order a 1.2 trio of Striped Motleys that were advertised on one of the popular Online Classified sites – since Graham’s job prevented him from personally receiving them at that time. When they arrived, KJ discovered that they constituted a 2.1 reverse trio (two males and one female) instead of the advertised 1.2 trio (one male and two females). KJ and Kasi recommended that Graham gift the extra male to me, and that’s what Graham did. Profound thanks to Graham, KJ, and Kasi for that gracious and fortuitous gift. In 2008, both the Lodrigues and I independently bred our males (Graham’s and mine) to novel (unrelated) corns. I produced about 24 TESSERAS (so named by the Lodrigues for the tessellated lateral markings) from over 50 fertile eggs, but since the Lodrigues were in the middle of a career move to another State, they were less fortunate, producing just four non-mutant Okeetee-looking corns. My Tesseras were produced by the pairing of the male Tessera to three novel female corns (two F1 Locality Okeetees from Chip Bridges Rhett Butler Line and one Okeetee-ish female, Het for Stripe and Amel). Imagine my surprise in seeing what we thought were nearly flawless Striped Motleys from three different females, only one of which was Het for a recessive pattern mutation? After the first brood of 50% Tesseras hatched from the female that was het for Stripe and Amel, except for the perfection of pattern, I was not thinking new dominant mutation, but when both wild-type Okeetees produced the same results, it was obvious that a new mutation was discovered.
Upon receiving the reverse trio from the seller, we all commented on the mutual peculiarity of the phenotypes. Most appeared to be the most perfectly Striped Motleys ever seen – in so much as their dorsal stripes were nearly contiguous from neck to tail tip (something never before seen in any corn snake pattern mutant) – but that was hardly possible if the admission of the breeder were true – that they were products of pairing a Striped corn with an Okeetee corn. How could these descendants of a Striped corn bred to an Okeetee be Motley types, instead of Striped? It is still unclear if those 2.1 Tesseras were F1s (first familial generation) or F2s (the originator of this line is now out of the hobby and difficult to reach – for clarification). If these three Tesseras are F1s, my deduction is that the striped corn he used in the original pairing was actually Striped AND Tessera. Even if those three were F2s, the likelihood of the mutant patriarch being a Striped Tessera is strong.
In the 100+ Tessera mutants produced by me as of Fall, 2010, I’m seeing the following features:
The most obvious advantage of having Tesseras in your breeding inventory (aside from their inherent beauty) is that because the mutation is dominantly inherited, 50% of every brood of corns from them will be Tessera mutants. With most other corn snake mutations, one must raise all the Het F1 progeny, and won’t receive any mutants until F2 reproduction (a task that can take four to six years). In the course of adding Tessera to the myriad current patterns and colors of corns, an entirely new market is now in the making.
Predominantly contiguous dorsal striping is the most unique feature of most Tesseras. Even when the stripe is broken, it resumes immediately thereafter (unlike Striped and Motley mutants whose dorsal striping never resumes with any degree of renewal). Roughly 1/3 of all that have been produced so far have no stripe breaks. Another 1/3 or so have two to four stripe breaks, and the other 1/3 can have five to 20+ stripe breaks, but those breaks are merely interruptions of the stripe. Not unlike very good Striped Motleys, many Tesseras have an interruption of stripe at the girdle (anatomical location – polar to the cloaca), but unlike Striped and Motley mutants, the dorsal stripe almost always continues to the tail tip. Thus far, fully striped Tesseras have been produced from parents with some-to-many dorsal stripe breaks. Hence, broken-striped Tesseras can produce fully striped striped Tesseras, even though their stripe is broken. Incidentally, none of the original 2.1 original Tesseras in this line have complete dorsal striping, but many of their progeny and grand progeny do.
More than 2/3 of the Tesseras produced by me so far have atypically large amounts of black pigment in their non-ventral pattern — a feature roughly 1% of all Striped and Motley mutants have demonstrated to date. Less than 1/4 of all Tesseras produced by me have little to no black in their markings, and these are mostly Striped Tesseras.
The belly patterns are all over the charts. A precious few have enough belly checkering to qualify them as wild-type common corns — until you flip them over to see their mutant pattern elsewhere. About 1/3 of them have roughly 15% to 30% of the volume of checkering seen in wild-types, and about 1/3 or more have virtually no belly checkering at all. Some of the ones with NO belly checkering have organized strings of black markings running the length of both sides of the belly, along the ventral keel.
Having grafted another entire branch on the already sprawling corn snake family tree, we think the Tessera mutation will offer genetic flexibility never before possible; mainly in the realm of making Stripe and Motle
Het Coral Bloodred 04-23-13
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{simpleproduct:id=599}
ToDAY’s SNAKE of the DAY (Tue., April 23, 2013)
#042313
Common Corn Snake Het Bloodred and Coral Snow (see comments below)
Female
d.o.h. 2010
34″ on April 18, 2013
34″ on April 18, 2013
$165.00 shipped
Comments: The parents of this 34″ 2011 common corn are a Bloodred and a Champagne/Neon Snow. Hence, this female is het for Bloodred and more than one line of the Coral Snow types.
Ultramel Motley 02-22-13
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S O L D
#022213
50″ long on Feb. 21, 2013
Ultramel Motley
Female
d.o.h. 2009
$300.00 shipped
Comments: Feeding on frozen/thawed adult mice, this 2009 female Ultramel Motley was brumated (hibernated) from October 10, 2012 to January 31, 2013 so she should be ready to breed in just a few short weeks. I love her yellow-ish head.
Interspecies Hybrid Details
Ultramel (no aka)
Most Commonly Used Name: Ultramel
Mode of Genetic Inheritance: Codominant with Amel, but recessive to Wild-type
Mode of Genetic Inheritance: Codominant with Amel, but recessive to Wild-type
Morph Type: Hybrid Codominant
Eye Color: Dark Red pupil & body ground colored iris
Note: Ultramel is the visual heterozygote of the the mutation, Ultra.
INTERSPECIES HYBRID
The founder (discoverer) of the Ultra mutation states that he originally paired a gray rat snake with a corn snake, in the discovery of this mutation. By the time most of us were made aware of the HYBRID origins of Ultra types (originally named Ultra Hypos), we had already bred it into many other corn snake mutations. It was therefore collectively decided that in so much as it would be virtually impossible to track down (and eliminate) each and every snake possessing a form of the Ultra gene (surely thousands of individuals in the collections of hundreds of breeders and keepers), the mutation would be treated like other pure corns. In so much as it generally did not alter the corn snake pattern, some breeders could be unaware they had it, while some could avoid mentioning it, if they did know. Those of you out there who are boycotting HYBRID corns are advised to avoid acquisition of suspicious-looking corns with the word ULTRA in the morph description. Likewise, purists who admirably endeavor to promote only the genetically purest of corns are urged to question corns that have suspiciously abnormal features that are historically regarded as hybrid markers. Not that all such markers are proof of alien origins. Especially because of the difficulty and expense of formulating a DNA base line for all North American colubrid snake species, and in the absence of expensive DNA testing to identify the authenticity of pure corns, without obvious visual and/or genetic distinctions, identification of legitimately pure (orimpure) corns is difficult at this time, if not completely impossible.
The founder (discoverer) of the Ultra mutation states that he originally paired a gray rat snake with a corn snake, in the discovery of this mutation. By the time most of us were made aware of the HYBRID origins of Ultra types (originally named Ultra Hypos), we had already bred it into many other corn snake mutations. It was therefore collectively decided that in so much as it would be virtually impossible to track down (and eliminate) each and every snake possessing a form of the Ultra gene (surely thousands of individuals in the collections of hundreds of breeders and keepers), the mutation would be treated like other pure corns. In so much as it generally did not alter the corn snake pattern, some breeders could be unaware they had it, while some could avoid mentioning it, if they did know. Those of you out there who are boycotting HYBRID corns are advised to avoid acquisition of suspicious-looking corns with the word ULTRA in the morph description. Likewise, purists who admirably endeavor to promote only the genetically purest of corns are urged to question corns that have suspiciously abnormal features that are historically regarded as hybrid markers. Not that all such markers are proof of alien origins. Especially because of the difficulty and expense of formulating a DNA base line for all North American colubrid snake species, and in the absence of expensive DNA testing to identify the authenticity of pure corns, without obvious visual and/or genetic distinctions, identification of legitimately pure (orimpure) corns is difficult at this time, if not completely impossible.
Ultramel corns are what we call the Visual Het version of the Ultra Mutation. Virtually all heterozygotes of mutations that are recessive to Wild-type are indiscernable, when compared to their non-Het siblings. At SMR, we seldom offer the homozygous version of the Ultra mutation because there is a subtle and often indistinguishable difference between the Homo (Ultra) and Het (Ultramel) versions. Genetically speaking, Ultras are the powerhouse genetic version of this mutation in so much as when you breed one to any Amel corn snake, 100% of the progeny will be Ultramels. Breeding Ultramels to Amels results in approximately 50% Ultramels and approximately 50% Amels. Generally, Ultramels are more colorful than Ultras, but there are exceptions in both directions. Breeding an Ultra type to any non-Amel corn will result in NO Ultra types, since Ultra is recessive to Wild-type.
Other than appearance, the primary (and inherent) value of Ultra Type Corns (Ultras and Ultramels and their color and pattern compounds) is their mode of genetic inheritance. Since they are co-dominant to Amelanistics, pairing any Ultra type to ANY Amel corn (or Het thereof) will render some Ultra types in the F1 (first generation) of out-crossing to non-Ultra type corns. The results of pairing an Ultra-type with a non-Amel corn (or Het thereof) will render Mendelian results that parallel recessively-inherited mutations; no Ultra-types will result, and all progeny will be Het for Ultra when bred to non-Amels.
This is one of the few corn snake morphs that you should not purchase based on a pictorial example. This is because of the extreme diversity of appearance within the mutation/morph. I could easily make this statement about most corn snake mutants, but the reason I do so here is because the real value of this mutation is its’ mode of inheritance. Few corn snake mutations are inherited in dominant fashion, so the primary reason most snake lovers purchase Ultras or Ultramels is because when they breed one to any snake with a form of classic amelanism, approximately 50% of the F1 broods will be Ultra-type mutants (or approximately 25% – in the case of breeding the an Ultramel to a corn that is het for Amel and 100% if you breed an Ultra to an Amel type). I think you will be amply satisfied with any phenotype you receive from an Ultra type, but should you choose to buy one based on the sample picture on any web site, you may be disappointed if yours does not mature to be exactly like the one that inticed you to purchase.
Both Ultras and Ultramels render some of the most extreme examples of hypomelanism in corns, but a hypo-type phenotype is the genetic and visual function we recognize. Some people call them Ultra or Ultramel Hypos, but I prefer to leave off the “hypo” since the chromosomal location of this mutation is the same as Amel (Ultra and Amel reside on the same locus of the chromosome) and therefore has nothing genetically to do with the Hypo gene locus. Also, the hobby vernacular for the double mutant that is homozygous for both Hypo A and Ultramel would be Ultramel Hypo. Upon hearing/reading these two words together, you would surely presume that the snake Ultramel Hypo is a double mutant. Hence, those two words together are incorrect and confusing — when describing the single mutant genotypes, Ultramel or Ultra. When you breed an Ultra type to any corn that is not Amel (or Het Amel), this mutation genetically behaves like a recessive. Example: Pairing an Ultra with an Amel results in 100% Ultramel progeny. Pairing an Ultramel with an Amel results in progeny consisting of approximately 50% Amels and approximately 50% Ultramels. Pairing an Ultra with a wild-type (non-Amel) corn results in 100% normals (wild type) that are all het for Ultra.
What to expect:
Hatchlings often look like extreme Hypo mutants, but some are nearly as brightly colored as Amel corns (lacking so much overall black). Of course, the main distinction between the two is the pink/red eye pupil in Amels and the wine-colored pupil in Ultramels. There is great variation in the degree of red in both eye pupil and pattern coloration.
Important Note:
These images are not renderings of the actual animals being offered, (except for uniquely offered snakes found in the SURPLUS section of this web site). We do not provide pictures of individual hatchling snakes for sale, nor do we recommend that you ever choose a new pet based on an image of its neonatal form. Corns change so dramatically from hatchling to adult, they will NEVER have the same colors or contrasts throughout maturity. While most of the snakes we produce will mature to resemble the featured adult image(s) on our web site, unlike manufactured products that are respectively clones of each other, the nature of polygenic variation results in each animal being similar but not identical to others of its morph. The snake we select for you may not mature to be identical to the pictured examples, but will be chosen based on our experience of observing which neonates will mature to properly represent their respective morph. We take this responsibility very seriously, and therefore publish the guarantee that we will exchange your SMR snake if it does not mature to be like our advertised examples.
Coral Snow 02-07-13
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{simpleproduct:id=485}
toDAY’s SNAKE of the DAY (Thu. Feb. 7, 2013)
#020713
Coral Snow
Female
d.o.h. 2009
48″ long on Feb. 7, 2013
48″ long on Feb. 7, 2013
$185.00 shipped
Comments: Superior color and size maturity
This is SMR id# 1014. She is a great breeder – often laying over 20 eggs for her first annual clutch, followed by at least 12 for her second clutch of each breeding season. She brumated from October 10th to Jan. 31st so she has had two meals since emergence from brumation. She’s very friendly, having never tried to bite anyone/anything but rodents.
A brief history of the Coral Snow.
Back in the 1980s when corn snake herpetoculture was in its infancy, Snow corns that had a pink or coral cast were called Coral Snows. Early in Corn Snake Herpetoculture, Snow corns were not as variable in color as they are toDAY. At the time when pink/coral ones were dubbed Coral Snows, it was only common to see snows in two tones of white; crisp white (aka: bone white Snows), or Coral. Back then, prediction of the coral coloration was hit-and-miss (some would start out with a blush of pink, but turn white on white) so in the absence of genetic data to explain the origin of the pink and/or coral colors, the name Coral became somewhat obscure from the hobby for many years. After that era, Jim Stelpflug at Southwest Wisconsin Reptiles was one of the first to predictably reproduce coral colored snows, and even though pinkish snows were still seen in the hobby, Jim was reliably reproducing them – and was even able to intensify the coral coloration in most. At that time, we mistakenly believed the gene mutation responsible for pink or coral colored snows was the result of Snow corns that also possessed the Hypo A mutation. While some pink or coral colored Snows that were also Hypo mutants DID show a blush of pink, their pink cast rarely intensified to be remarkable in appearance, as is the case with Coral Snow Mutants of toDAY. Pink and Green Snows were not rare back then, and some of those demonstrated deeply saturated pink coloration. Again, the origin of that phenotype was (and to an extent, still is) poorly understood. In so much as most of the early Coral Snows originated from Jim Stelpflug at SWR (Southwest Wisconsin Reptiles), it appeared obvious that some mutation he had in his genetic inventory was causing his to be more colorful than others. The exaggerated pink/coral coloration is now believed by some to be the demonstration of the dominant-type mutation (Strawberry) that was also discovered/developed by Jim Stelpflug. This is believed to be THE color mutation responsible for the rich colors, if not ONE OF such mutations. I have not personally had reproductive results to validate this theory, and in a hobby that has so very many hidden mutations, perhaps Strawberry is just one of such mutations to cause such colors? Breeding trials are still ongoing in discovering more about this interesting (if not mysterious) mutation. It is not mysterious in terms of inheritance, but in that some non-Strawberry corns can exhibit similar colors – without being Coral/Strawberry mutants. It is not a given that every corn snake displaying inordinate amounts of pink or coral is a Strawberry mutant, but so far, breeding trials between the three most notable Coral Snow types (Salmon, Champagne, and Neon) have demonstrated that they are all at least elementally allelic (breeding any combintion of the three morphs renders Snow corns that have extreme saturation of pink, coral, or both). Hence, there may be other gene mutations or gene modifiers involved in one or all of those morphs, but they at least share the same mutational foundation that causes them to look remarkably pink/coral – unlike classic white-on-white Snows.
The general conclusion in the corn snake industry at this time is that any Snow corn that is also a Strawberry Mutant (thereby exhibiting a color predominance of pink and/or coral) is a Coral Snow. Any additional refrence to familial origins (i.e. Salmon, Champagne, or Neon) is merely a lineage descriptor that may prove valuable if and when it is determined that one or more of those bloodlines actually possesses additional mutations, or strongly influencing polygenic traits.
Snow 02-08-13
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{simpleproduct:id=486}
toDAY’s SNAKE of the DAY (Fri., Feb. 8, 2013)
#020813
Snow Corn Snake
Female
d.o.h. 2008
49″ long on Feb. 8, 2013
49″ long on Feb. 8, 2013
$225.00 shipped
This 49″ long 2008 female Snow Corn snake is a highly virile breeder. She continually lays two clutched of eggs annually that collectively average 41 eggs each year.
She would be a great neutral breeder for color projects and/or a good producer of re-sellable corns.
Snow (no aka)
Most Commonly Used Name: Snow
Mode of Genetic Inheritance: Recessive
Morph Type: Mutation Compound (Amel & Anery)
Most Commonly Used Name: Snow
Mode of Genetic Inheritance: Recessive
Morph Type: Mutation Compound (Amel & Anery)
Eye Color: Red pupil
The first compound mutation in corns, Snow corns (genetically, Anery Amels) are the F2 finished product of pairing an Amel with an Anery. Both base mutation phenotypes are obviously supplanted with different shades of white (no Amel or Anery traits showing). Pairing an Amel with an Anery yields 100% wild phenotypes (common corns) that are of course all Heterozygous (abbr. Het) for both Amel and Anery. In so much as both base gene mutations are inherited in simple recession fashion, approximately one out of 16 of the F2 progeny will be a Snow. Of course, there will be NO black on any snow corn that lacks the genetic impacts of other mutations. Sometimes, black is visible in parts of the eye, but this is not melanin. It is eye tissue whose density defies light reflection, so it appears to us to be black. At this time, many breeders are changing the colors of Snow corns through the addition of other gene mutations that alter the mature phenotype.
What to expect:
Since they have been commonly bred for so long, there is a wide variety of different color schemes in Snow corns. As hatchlings, most are some shade of white with contrasting white or pink markings, but most end up being off-white with dirty white markings. Pink can show through on adults and yellow is becoming a fairly common color in adult snows (not the carotenoid yellow that manifests through maturity from retention of carotenoids in their diets). Such non-carotenoid retained yellow is sometimes mixed in the ground color, sometimes only in the markings, sometimes only in the boundaries of the blotches, and any combination thereof.
Extreme Okeetee 020913
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toDAY’s SNAKE of the DAY (Sat. Feb. 9, 2013)
{simpleproduct:id=487}
Details
#020913
Extreme Okeetee with partial ZZ pattern
Female
d.o.h. 2009
54″ long on Feb. 9, 2013
54″ long on Feb. 9, 2013
$225.00 SHIPPED
Comments: Superior color and size maturity.
Details of this morph:
EXTREME OKEETEE (no aka)
Most Commonly Used Name: Extreme Okeetee
Mode of Genetic Inheritance: Dominant (wild-type) + Selective Variation
Morph Type: Selective Variation of wild-type
Mode of Genetic Inheritance: Dominant (wild-type) + Selective Variation
Morph Type: Selective Variation of wild-type
Eye Color: Black pupil & body ground colored iris
Arguably the most famous example of a corn snake morph named for its geographic origins, the Okeetee is also considered to be the most beautiful non-mutant corn snake in the species. First popularized by Carl Kauffeld in at least two books describing his field discoveries of this beautiful and robust race of corn snake on or near the Okeetee Hunt Club in South Carolina, Okeetees have since been selectively bred for extremely bright and saturated colors. When we say locality Okeetee, we are referring to animals whose genetic origins can be traced to the Jasper County, South Carolina region. There is nothing magic about the Hunt Club that makes only animals in that area outstanding looking. Corns in other states of the Corn Snake’s range can be just as beautiful, but proportionally speaking, the corns from this region are arguably more beautiful than corns found in most other regions. Okeetees that have been selectively bred for appearance and consequently satisfy a visual hobby standard are sometimes called Okeetee morphs, but more often are called simply Okeetee corns.
Okeetees (in the hobby) are a premier example of the promotion of polygenic traits through selective breeding. By breeding together specimens with desired characteristics, through generational selection of pairing only the ones with superior target features, it doesn’t take long to render stunning examples of the morph – without the aid of gene mutations. Please, do not attempt to hunt for Okeetee corns on private property. The Okeetee Hunt Club in South Carolina expressly forbids trespassing, and it is possible to be legally prosecuted, if caught on their land without express written permission.
What to expect:
Oddly, most of the best Okeetees we produce are the least beautiful – as hatchlings. If you tossed a good Okeetee in a bucket of hatchling common corns, you’d likely not identify it until after several months of maturity. Neonates should show bold black blotch margins, but until one or two sheds, the bright ground colors are not obvious. By that time, blotch colors are beginning to show, and adult Okeetees should have clean (low color freckling) ground and blotch color zones, separated by noticeably broad, black borders. Most of the spectacular examples of this morph are so good, they are sold by other names in the hobby – and are consequently more expensive (i.e. Extreme Okeetees, Buckskin Okeetees, Banded Okeetees). Another notable feature of this morph is its robust size and feeding vigor. Okeetees (which CAN have orange on their bellies – but is relatively rare at this time) have the most spectacular black and white checkered bellies, compared to other wild-type corns.
Do not expect any hatchling/neonate Okeetee to look anything like the adults. This picture shows an adult female Extreme Okeetee with several of her newly hatched babies (no, she was not present when they hatched in the incubator). This adult looked exactly like the babies shown in this image when she was their size.
Caramel? 021013
Each DAY at 11:00 am. ct (GMT – 5) we will post a different SMR snake being offered at a special price.
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#021013
Caramel (that may actually be an Amber)
Female
d.o.h. 2010
46″ long on Feb. 10, 2013
46″ long on Feb. 10, 2013
$175.00 shipped
This 2010 female Caramel may also be hypomelanistic (therefore Amber). I never checked her sloughed skin for melanin because it didn’t matter to me if she was Amber or Caramel, but she’s very pale for a classic Caramel, if not a rather dark Amber? She laid 18 eggs last year. She was brumated on October 10th and emerged on Feb. 7, 2013 so she has had an amply cold and long brumation.
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Caramel (no aka)
Most Commonly Used Name: Caramel
Mode of Genetic Inheritance: Recessive
Morph Type: Single Recessive Mutation
Mode of Genetic Inheritance: Recessive
Morph Type: Single Recessive Mutation
Eye Color: Black pupil & body ground colored iris
At first glance, Caramel mutants are not usually attractive – since gold or brown color actions of this gene mutation essentially replace the rich red tones predominant in most corn snakes. Aside from their general appearance, the Caramel mutation has some unusual genetic properties (compared to most recessively inherited corn snake gene mutants), but this mutation is essential if you wish to eventually create yellow corns. The most notably atypical characteristic of this mutation is that of heterozygous (Het for short) Caramels often displaying mutation markers (exhibiting traits of the homozygous phenotypes). It is not typical for out-crossed F1 corns to show markers of their gene mutation, but from pairing a Caramel corn to a non-mutant corn of any other color and/or pattern, most of the out-crossed F1 progeny will exhibit a blush of gold or yellow as neonates. In other words, most of the first generation babies will not look like typical wild-type corns. As adults, most corns that are Het for caramel are easily distinguishable from Hets of virtually all other F1 recessive out-crosses, but since this is not always the case, the co-incidental caramel coloration is thought to be the result of polygenic traits derived from the first non-mutant corns that were paired with Caramel types. If this is the case, it demonstrates the power of polygenetic forces by the persistence to show these colors after hundreds of out-crossings – since the late 1980s when this mutation was first discovered.
What to expect:
Caramel mutants are relatively lackluster, when compared to some of their compound products (i.e. Butters and Ambers ). There are still other corn snake mutations (both color and pattern) whose out-crossed progeny will have modified appearance when paired with Caramel mutants, so do not be afraid to mix this seemingly “lazy” genetic color mutation with other corn snake mutations. Like most corn snake mutants, both adult and neonate Caramels are highly variable, spanning the color spectrum from brown to gold, and some even exhibit green tones. As neonates, many Caramels are similar to hatchling Anery corns, but as they mature, the typical caramel coloration slowly manifests. Some of our lines have obvious blotch borders, but most have borders that are barely discernible and some have no blotch borders.
Important Note:
These images are not renderings of the actual animals being offered, (except for uniquely offered snakes found in the SURPLUSsection of this web site). We do not provide pictures of individual hatchling snakes for sale, nor do we recommend that you ever choose a new pet based on an image of its neonatal form. Corns change so dramatically from hatchling to adult, they will NEVER have the same colors or contrasts throughout maturity. While most of the snakes we produce will mature to resemble the featured adult image(s) on our web site, unlike manufactured products that are respectively clones of each other, the nature of polygenic variation results in each animal being similar but not identical to others of its morph. The snake we select for you may not mature to be identical to the pictured examples, but will be chosen based on our experience of observing which neonates will mature to properly represent their respective morph. We take this responsibility very seriously, and therefore publish the guarantee that we will exchange yourSMR snake if it does not mature to be like our advertised examples.