Pale male

[count dewclaw]

Caught this pair of Easterns. As you can see the male is pale compared to the female. Would this be considered hypomelanistic? I'm just learning about the different color variations...

http://www.thamnophis.com/thamphotos/data//500/medium/palemale.JPG

[Stefan-A]

In my opinion, you would have to know what the norm was in the population he's originally from. There are so many colour variations in the wild, that it's hard to tell which has "reduced black pigmentation" and which hasn't. It's all relative. :)

[count dewclaw]

Well, I've never seen one this color before, but I hear what you are saying. I like his color anyway. I still have alot to learn about garter snakes.

[Stefan-A]

Actually, I don't think it's that far from aSnakeLovinBabe's eastern.

http://www.thamnophis.com/forum/welcome-lounge/2378-hello-reptastic.html

http://www.thamnophis.com/forum/general-talk/2408-very-first-her-kind.html

[count dewclaw]

I don't think he is quite that pale, but definitely lighter than any others I've seen. I'll try to get some better pictures.

[Sid]

Great photo, LeAnn. I really like that male.:)

[enigma200316]

nice snakes, that female looks huge,any possibility of being gravid? or a nice robust snake..........

[drache]

I like them both, but yeah, the male's very pretty

[count dewclaw]

nice snakes, that female looks huge,any possibility of being gravid? or a nice robust snake..........

Can they be gravid through brumation? I just caught her a couple days ago. I think she is just robust...the males were all over her ;). She is a big girl, I'm guessing about 30" long.

[stonyloam]

That female looks almost exactly like the big eastern that I found last May, she also looked quite stout when I fond her. I kept her through the summer and she gave birth to 42 live babies on August 20, 2007. http://www.thamnophis.com/forum/general-talk/1556-my-big-eastern.html
The other one looks very much like the one hanging around my sunroom now. Mine is a little darker green, but markings are very similar. That by the way is a great photo and would be a nice addition to the "Easterns I have met " thread collection of photos.:D

[count dewclaw]

Well, I'm hoping she'll have lots of babies. I have her in with this male, I don't know if any other males got to her before I found her though. I think I caught her just as she was coming out of hibernation...

I will post this picture in the Easterns I have met thread...

[ssssnakeluvr]

no...not hypomelanistic....just a lighter colored one. they have a lot of variation in color and pattern.

[anji1971]

Very nice snakes! I like the light one -- he looks like coffee with cream.......yum!:D

[count dewclaw]

no...not hypomelanistic....just a lighter colored one. they have a lot of variation in color and pattern.

Thanks. But that leaves me wondering how much less melanin than normal they have to have in order to be called hypomelanistic? Because isn't there a whole range of melanin levels between normal and amelanistic? I don't care in regards to this snake (I like him regardless), but I am curious.

[ssssnakeluvr]

http://www.thamnophis.com/forum/general-talk/2408-very-first-her-kind.html

this would be a hypomelanistic...very sweet snake!

[count dewclaw]

Indeed, she is a very sweet snake.

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

that is a very pretty lightly colored male. I'm leaning towards he just a very pretty light colored snake, and not an actual hypo. Maybe if you posted a few more pics though, because if you take a crappy photo of MY hypo eastern, she comes out looking darker than she really is. None the less he has good genes!!!

[snakeman]

How are the babies looking from that hypo eastern?

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

well the two of the five that were not growing much and seemed a little less willing to survive have died as I expected, but the remaining three are skyrocketing in growth and will take ANYTHING I hand to them, and the smallest of the three can now eat whole day old pinks. The other two are still scared to try that ;)

[EdgyExoticReptiles]

are they still getting lighter?

well the two of the five that were not growing much and seemed a little less willing to survive have died as I expected, but the remaining three are skyrocketing in growth and will take ANYTHING I hand to them, and the smallest of the three can now eat whole day old pinks. The other two are still scared to try that ;)

[Zephyr]

I caught a snake like this earlier this year. They're very pretty snakes, an overall lighter coloration. Probably just some sort of gene that hinders melanin production. Theoretically, one could do a series of inbreeding to produce hypomelanistic individuals...

[count dewclaw]

That's what I hope to work on...

[Zephyr]

Ah. :P
You'd need a female like that, unless it's sex-linked.

[count dewclaw]

I have him in with a female and I'm hoping some of the offspring will be light. Keep the lightest offspring and breed them, and so on and so forth...we shall see.

[Zephyr]

Ah. :P
Just hope that the female is het for the lighter color.

[count dewclaw]

Yeah, me too! There is a chance that she is his mother...

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

I don't mean to bring ya down at all, but I don't think that snake is a hypo! I mean he could be, but, chances are he's just a bit lighter than most. He just doesn't stand out as hypo to me, but he still is a very pretty snake. But anyways, just be sure that when you do get babies from HIS babies, start outcrossing so they don't become too inbred, it will weaken their genes and you could start to see problems :eek:

[KITKAT]

I'm with Shannon Nicole on this one. normals are light like this in Ohio very often... in fact, the bigger snake in the pic is darker than most easterns in Ohio.


Caught this pair of Easterns. As you can see the male is pale compared to the female. Would this be considered hypomelanistic? I'm just learning about the different color variations...

http://www.thamnophis.com/thamphotos/data//500/medium/palemale.JPG

[Zephyr]

I'm not saying he's a hypo, but what I am saying is to have that light coloration there has to be some sort of gene that hinders (not stops) the snake's production of melanin.

[KITKAT]

Here in Ohio, I have been referring to the light ones as "chocolates". But I don't know what genetics is at work.


I'm not saying he's a hypo, but what I am saying is to have that light coloration there has to be some sort of gene that hinders (not stops) the snake's production of melanin.

[count dewclaw]

I don't mean to bring ya down at all, but I don't think that snake is a hypo! I mean he could be, but, chances are he's just a bit lighter than most. He just doesn't stand out as hypo to me, but he still is a very pretty snake. But anyways, just be sure that when you do get babies from HIS babies, start outcrossing so they don't become too inbred, it will weaken their genes and you could start to see problems :eek:

I agree, I don't think he's hypo, now that I've seen what hypos look like. I just really like his coloring. I do know about not inbreeding too much, but thanks for the reminder.