Question on genetics

[Lumpy]

Good enough. My question really stems from any future aquisition of Garters, particularly the Puget Sound. Very pretty!

So, if I were to get one, I wondered if they could be housed together with my Eastern or individually.

Thanks for the info!

Lump

[Zephyr]

Good enough. My question really stems from any future aquisition of Garters, particularly the Puget Sound. Very pretty!

So, if I were to get one, I wondered if they could be housed together with my Eastern or individually.

Thanks for the info!

Lump

Females generally don't cause problems; it's the males. You could always get a species of the same sex... Or get 1.1 of one species and 1.1 of another.

[Lumpy]

I've been meaning to ask, what does that mean 1.1 or whatever numbers I'm seeing?

Lump

[Stefan-A]

I've been meaning to ask, what does that mean 1.1 or whatever numbers I'm seeing?

Lump

One male, one female.

1.2.3 would mean "1 male, 2 females and 3 of unknown sex".

[Zephyr]

Females generally don't cause problems; it's the males. You could always get a species of the same sex... Or get 1.1 of one species and 1.1 of another.

Or, even better yet, house the females and males of each species separately. :P

[Steven@HumboldtHerps]

Hello,

In this case, I believe there is no hybridization to fear since the Puget Sound (T. sirtalis pickeringii) and the Eastern (T. sirtalis sirtalis) are still the same species. I agree against giving them the opportunity to cross, especially if you are not dealing with simple recessive genetics. Subspecies characteristics usually deal with polygenic traits (I call 'em "blenders"). Blending or intergrading the two will alter the purity of both lines.

I intend to create actual hybrids between one and 2 other local species - pending approval from our local university and fish and game (still a ways away...) for research purposes only. Hybridization is suspected here in NW California. Proving that it occurs in the wild might explain many mysteries regarding the ancestral lineages of these snakes. Other than actually reading the DNA, breeding at least a couple of generations would be the only other way to determine actuality and thereafter the stats on fertility vs. sterility in proposed hybrids.

That's my take... Thanks for letting me ramble,

Steve