Milksnakes and Mantises

[nategodin]

It's that time of year again... black milksnakes tend to breed fairly late in the season, so Cher didn't drop her eggs until about two weeks ago. Two slugs and two good eggs... talk about a disappointing season! I actually took her to the vet earlier this week to get x-rays taken, just to make sure she wasn't eggbound. Below are some egg pics, a

Comments

[raveness_d]

Me again. ;)

I meant to ask. Do these guys require any special lighting/heating? Cooling before breeding?

I've read some conflicting information, and I figured you'd be the guy to ask.

[nategodin]

Nope, they don't need any heating or lighting, and I've never cooled mine before breeding. In the cloud forests they're native to, there's very little change in average temperature or amount of daylight throughout the year, so there's no need to simulate that sort of seasonal change in captivity. Where did you hear differently?

[raveness_d]

Just googling husbandry for the most part. I can't recall the specific sites, though most have stated that no heating was neccessary.
I've yet to find books locally with specific care instructions on gaigeae.

I just wanted to double check.

[nategodin]

Yeah, there isn't much in print about them... actually, the "Kingsnake and Milksnake" book they carry at the local petstore (the one by Markel, I think) had some completely incorrect information, saying they were extremely agressive and not recommended for beginners. I think whoever wrote that was either keeping them too warm (gaigeae can become stressed and agitated in a heated enclosure) or got their fingers in the way at feeding time! They can be very agressive feeders and don't have great eyesight or aim when striking at prey.

[bugamok]

Pretty! How big is Sonny? You should name the mantis Orcheis, which I believe means testicles in Latin and is the root for orchid.

sans testicles

[nategodin]

Sonny is just over 6 feet long; kinda hard to tell from the pictures. Orcheis would be a pretty cool name for the mantis; I'm even fairly certain it's a male.

[dontime]

a snake! ohhhhhh its a snake.....

badger badger badger ...

[hear_dr_jen]

The mantis is beautiful; I've never seen an Orchid Mantis before. I'll be in Maine October 17 & 18th. Hope to catch up with you. I may try to do a BBQ at my friend Jamie's house in Orrington so I can get more people together at one time. Nothing planned yet. I do want to catch up with you. And I'll have future hubby in tow so you can see if he passes muster. =-)

[nategodin]

Cool, let me know... my phone number is still the same.

[laurahatesblue]

Hey man, this is the comic that's similar to Married to the Sea (and I think came before it, too):

http://wondermark.com/