Diamond Pythons updated

[shaunyboy]

i finally got round to taking and uploading recent pictures of my 4 Diamonds,so here goes folks.....

non locale specific 2008 female and non locale specific 2011 male

http://i429.photobucket.com/albums/qq17/spilota01/P1020195_zps8314dee0.jpg (http://s429.photobucket.com/user/spilota01/media/P1020195_zps8314dee0.jpg.html)


http://i429.photobucket.com/albums/qq17/spilota01/P1020193_zpsa3aef2fb.jpg (http://s429.photobucket.com/user/spilota01/media/P1020193_zpsa3aef2fb.jpg.html)

http://i429.photobucket.com/albums/qq17/spilota01/P1020186_zps45e3eefb.jpg (http://s429.photobucket.com/user/spilota01/media/P1020186_zps45e3eefb.jpg.html)

Gosford 2011 male
http://i429.photobucket.com/albums/qq17/spilota01/P1020177_zpsbbfe357c.jpg (http://s429.photobucket.com/user/spilota01/media/P1020177_zpsbbfe357c.jpg.html)

http://i429.photobucket.com/albums/qq17/spilota01/P1020154_zps8d480ad2.jpg (http://s429.photobucket.com/user/spilota01/media/P1020154_zps8d480ad2.jpg.html)

http://i429.photobucket.com/albums/qq17/spilota01/P1020099_zpsd549bd9c.jpg (http://s429.photobucket.com/user/spilota01/media/P1020099_zpsd549bd9c.jpg.html)

Gosford 2014 female

http://i429.photobucket.com/albums/qq17/spilota01/P1020014_zps9bb83c7d.jpg (http://s429.photobucket.com/user/spilota01/media/P1020014_zps9bb83c7d.jpg.html)

http://i429.photobucket.com/albums/qq17/spilota01/P1020050_zps4f346095.jpg (http://s429.photobucket.com/user/spilota01/media/P1020050_zps4f346095.jpg.html)

since the beggining of January i have been giving my males,3 days in with the female then 3 days out,one male at a time and both getting equal chances to do the job...

the non locale male interacts with the female,but i have seen no locks

the Gosford male just runs straight to the females cool end hide,then refuses to come out,i think big girls scare him

i really hope one of my males fathers a clutch


cheers shaun

[dave himself]

Stunning diamonds Shaun good luck with the breeding and keep us posted mate :)

[lady_bug87]

Very nice animals Shaun! :)

[sharthun]

Beautiful Diamonds Shaun!

[EL Ziggy]

Looking Good Shaun! Best wishes with your breeding projects.

[SnoopySnake]

Those are some real nice diamonds, I especially like the last two!

[Moreau]

So gorgeous! I love Diamonds, definitely on my wish list!

[shaunyboy]

many thanks for the kind words folks

tomorrow i'm putting both males in with her at the same time,to see if it will initiate a lock with one of the males

ive read Australian literature that said Diamond males wait their turn,and will not combat like other Morelia do

ive seen videos of Jungles and Coastal intergrades combating,so i will chaperone my 2 males tomorrow and find out if the literature was correct

if it's not i'll put one of the males in a pillow case,which should let the other male pick up his scent,which may spur him on, to spur the female and get her more receptive

i will keep you updated


cheers shaun

[Sublimeballs]

Best of luck Shaun. Those are some beautiful diamonds.

As for the intro, just be prepared for the worst and hope for the best; have someone to help just incase. Introducing the males to each other just might do it. How close in size are the 2 males?

[marvelfreak]

They look stunning as ever. Got my fingers cross for you and hoping you get a nice big healthy clutch.

[MDT]

shaun....amazing as ususal. turn down the lights, put on a barry white cd, and hopefully they'll get the hint!

best of luck dude :)

[shaunyboy]

Best of luck Shaun. Those are some beautiful diamonds.

As for the intro, just be prepared for the worst and hope for the best; have someone to help just incase. Introducing the males to each other just might do it. How close in size are the 2 males?

i will stand guard until i see non combative interaction mate...


the males are both 2011 from different clutches

the non locale specific male is larger in girth ,imo just about twice as thick as the Gosford

the Gosford male is more slender,but roughly a foot or more longer than the other male

don't worry mate,i'm not about to let two of my Diamonds knock lumps out each other,i will be hovering around the front of the tank until i see it's all good

even in the wild other Morelia combat without biting,they will wrestle each other trying to pin and hold each others heads on the ground,so it's like the WWE for snakes :)

well here goes...

just away to put both males in now,as their daily basking period has just finished

Chuck i would feel so lucky if i get a clutch,far less a nice big Diamond clutch,but thanks my friend,i'll keep you informed

cheers shaun

[shaunyboy]

shaun....amazing as ususal. turn down the lights, put on a barry white cd, and hopefully they'll get the hint!

best of luck dude :)

if only it was that simple mate :yes:


poor Gosford male just flees to the cool end hide,makes himself as tightly coiled as possible,as far back into the hide he can get,and waits out the 3 dyas he's in with her,he won't even come out for his daily bask

the other male goes right over and interacts with the female,but does not goes as far as spurring her around her vent

i'm hoping two males together will get him to take the final steps

cheers shaun

P.S. Just looked out the window and we're getting our first decent snow fall of the year,maybe the change in barometric/atmospheric pressure,will help the cause reminding them it's winter,we have had a very very mild barely cold at all winter this time

we also had winds up to 100 mph the last 2 days,that as far as i know originated over your side of the pond from hurricanes

[MDT]

we also had winds up to 100 mph the last 2 days,that as far as i know originated over your side of the pond from hurricanes

Hey, we do what we can!
:D

[shaunyboy]

well folks there was NO COMBAT at all,both males would glide by each other acting like the other wasn't there,with the same look 2 humans on a bus would have if they didn't want to talk to each other

after 3 or 4 tours of the tank,as predicted the Gosford male has wnet into the females cool end hide

the non locale male,is hanging off a branch above and slightly to the side of the female

the female is curled up in a bee hive position like she was actually wrapped around eggs (if only lol)

well i have 3 days of this to study and record,so it's going to be a very informative few days folks

lets hope it's productive as well :)


cheers shaun

P.S. The Diamond takes are literally 2ft from my head as i lye in my bed,so they will be easily monitored

[shaunyboy]

Hey, we do what we can!
:D

thanks my friend,i know you give me all the help you can :)

not many folks would go through a hurricane,just to get his mates Diamonds breeding

for that i thank you :D


cheers shaun

[Moreau]

Hey Shaun what temps do you keep your Diamonds at? And do you use larger cages than other Morelia?

[shaunyboy]

Hey Shaun what temps do you keep your Diamonds at? And do you use larger cages than other Morelia?

none of my Diamonds are particularly large examples mate,so they are in 4x2x2ft vivariums


i give them a basking spot of 90F,using a exo terra light emitting basking bulb,and a 2.0 natural sunlight UVB light

how long they get depends on the season...

for example...

they just started to come out their 4 month cooling cycle at 2 hrs bask,2 hrs uvb

they are now on 4 hrs bask,8 hrs uvb

Keeping and Breeding Australian Pythons,edited by Mike Swan,has all the info you will ever need,best book out there and imo it's the Carpet Bible mate


cheers shaun

P.S. If any of my Diamonds were larger examples,i'd use 6x2x2ft vivariums,the 2014 Gosford female i just got came from large parents,the breeder reckons she will be a very large snake,so i now have to talk my wife round to another yet larger vivarium arriving in our bedroom at some point in the future lol