![]() ![]() Lucky for me (and the future of the Honduran color market), Stefan and his customer felt differently. At the time, color mutations were frowned upon in Germany, and many people thought the animals should be euthanized so they could not reproduce. Stefan runs M&S Reptilian, and one of his customers was offering a couple of baby albino Hondurans. I was fortunate enough to get a call from a good friend in Germany, Stefan Broghammer. In 1994, the reptile trade was just starting to explode with captive breeding and the onset of color mutations. hondurensis) holds a special place in my heart, because the Honduran was the snake that really launched my career as a full-time snake breeder. I can‘t say I prefer one type of milk snake over the other, but I will say that the Honduran milk snake ( L. When I saw the first baby Pueblan milk snakes on a vendor‘s table at a reptile show, I had to have them! Back then they were rare, and their prices were certainly a lot higher than they are today.Įver since I saw that pair of Pueblans, I have been on a journey that has lasted more than 20 years, and it has allowed me to work with and produce most of the 24 milk snake subspecies. My love affair with milk snakes began when I was a young, aspiring reptile breeder. It more resembles some of the rattlesnake species that occur within its range-another example of successful mimicry. The eastern milk‘s range is the northeast region of North America, where there are no coral snakes. triagulum), which does not display the bright colors or triads. The one subspecies that bucks the trend is the eastern milk snake ( L. There‘s an old rhyme people use to differentiate harmless milk and kingsnakes from dangerous coral snakes: “Red next to yellow is a deadly fellow, and red next to black is a friend of Jack‘s.” This is because the red triads of the harmless snakes adjoin black triads, whereas in coral snakes, they join yellow bands. Potential predators, upon seeing such alternating bands, know to stay away. Many milk snakes inhabit the same habitat as the venomous coral snake ( Micruroides spp.), which sports triads of the same color. The color of the triads, too, is a perfect example of mimicry as a defense mechanism. ![]() These bands are called triads, and the varying amount of triads is what helps identify the different milk snake subspecies. Milk snakes have been widely kept and bred in captivity since the 1970s, and they have remained popular snakes within the colubrid pet trade.Ĭommon among nearly all the milk snakes are the red, yellow (sometimes white) and black bands that contribute to a milk snake‘s stunning appearance. Adult sizes range from 24 inches all the way up to 6 feet, depending on the subspecies. These moderately sized snakes inhabit a vast range, stretching from southeastern Canada to South America. Milk snakes, comprising 24 subspecies of Lampropeltis triangulum, are some of the most beautiful snakes in the world. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |