Honduran Milksnakes occur in two
wild types, the Tangerine Phase & the Tri-Coloured Phase.
In the normal tri-coloured phase, the bands are black red/orange
and either yellow or white. In the tangerine phase the bands
are black, red/orange, and orange. The black bands normally
don't touch on the spine. Both phases have black tipping on
their scales,
covering anywhere from 5- 40% of each scale. It
is one of the largest Milksnakes some specimens have been reported
to have grown over 5 foot. They generally do well as hatchlings,
feeding aggressively from the start.
Black bands are either incredibly narrow or nonexistent and both the
yellow and red bands are closer to orange in color. The less black and
more orange the snake has on its skin, the more desirable they are
Banded with yellow, black and red
This recessive
gene is responsible for the lack of black
pigment in the honduran, resulting in
a very bright snake in shades of red,
tangerine, and yellow's
This recessive gene trait is responsible for the absence of the red pigment
cells resulting in a pale pink, black and white snake.
A combination of the Albino gene & the Anerythristic gene, makes
this a very pale pink and yellow snake
Ghosts are the result of crossing a Anerythristic honduran with a Hypomelanistic,
resulting in a beautiful snake with shades of grey, white and lavender.
Hypomelanistic is a simple recessive gene that reduces the black tipping
in the tangerine bands that is typical in a normal Honduran. The
hypo trait also affects the colour of the black bands, resulting
in a bluish or gray-black colouration that is most noticeable in
hatchlings and juveniles.
A combination of the Albino gene and the Hypomelanistic gene
An unusual and variable genetic trait that is not yet fully understood
yet. Striped phase, vanishing pattern phase, and normal hatchlings can
occur in the same clutch.
In captivity these animals will eat
a diet of mice. Juveniles are large & robust.
They are generally aggressive feeders that are easy to start. In the
wild they feed on small lizards, small snakes, nestling birds but there
main diet is rodents. Hatchlings can be fed every 3-4 days on pinkies,
where as adults will only require feeding once a week on appropriate
size mice. Fresh drinking water should be available at all times.
Hatchlings can be a bit nippy but soon calm down with handling and age.
A thermal gradient with a hot spot of 84 degrees F and a cooler end in
the mid 70's.
Honduran Milksnakes should always be housed separately
Hatchling Hondurans should be kept in a small container with a paper
towel substrate, provided with a hide and fresh drinking water.
Adults & Juveniles can be housed in aquarium type enclosures, vivarium
or a racking system, a general rule for deciding the size of a snakes
home is length approximately equal to three quarters your snake's length.
The cage's width should be about a third of your snake's length. A
hide should be provided at both ends of the vivarium. Good husbandry
and overall
cleanliness are essential to your Milksnakes general state of good
health. If the enclosure is dirty, too wet or dry, or too hot or cold,
this will
cause skin or respitory problems or both.
Hatchlings are best kept on paper towels.
Adults & Juveniles can be kept on a sterilized bark/wood chippings
or aspen bedding, newspaper and paper towels are often used in racking
systems but are not very pleasing to the eye when used in other forms
of housing. Pine & Cedar shaving should never be used as these
can be potentially dangerous to the snakes as they could digest some
when
they are being fed, and the fumes from the shavings can be toxic and
could cause respitory problems.
To hibernate a your Milksnake for the winter, make sure it has had no
food for two weeks and that the temperature is normal during this time
allowing the snake to fully digest it's last meal and empty it's guts.
After this the temperature should be lowered gradually over a few weeks
until its 55-60 degree F . The snake should not be fed during this period
but fresh drinking water should be available at all times. After 10-12
weeks the snake can gradually be warmed up over a two week period and
can then be offered food again.
After hibernation and approx 3 weeks
into a normal eating pattern for
the female they can be introduced
to one another, males will sometimes
not eat at this time being more interested in breeding than eating.
Female
Hondurans should only be bred from if they are healthy and feeding
well. A female that has eaten well
from a hatchling may be sexually
mature
by 18 months of age. The female should be introduced into the males
cage. Once several copulations have
been witnessed or the female looks
fatter
mid body they should be separated. The female should be given a laying
box. A plastic container big enough for her to coil loosely in, filled
with damp sphagnum moss. She may refuse food during her pregnancy,
or may only except smaller prey items
than usual. Expect her to lay her
eggs from 5-14 days after she has shed. The eggs when they are laid
should
be removed to another container two thirds filled with damp vermiculite
( when a handful is squeezed in the palm of the hand only a small amount
of water should be produced. ). Do not rotate the eggs, and don't unnecessarily
handle them. The box should have a fitted lid, and the humidity inside
should be 100%, some condensation will form on the lid if this is too
much and is dripping on the eggs, the vermiculite is too wet and a
little dry should be sprinkled over
the surface to take up the moisture.
I usually
have the egg boxes ready in the incubator a few days before I expect
her to lay, this way the vermiculite is at the right temperature and
any mistakes made in making up the vermiculite mixture can be rectified.
The eggs should be checked weekly removing the lid will give a good
exchange of air. The Eggs should
be incubated at 80-83 degrees F,
expect them
to hatch after 58-66 days. The female should be offered food after
she has laid, although some will
refuse until they have had there
post laying
shed. It is a good idea then to feed her twice a week on smaller prey
items until she has recovered her weight lose.
The hatchlings are large and robust they should be housed separately,
and should start eating after their neonate shed which will occur anywhere
from 5-10 days from leaving there egg.
© Sue
Knight 2002 |
