breeding

[nguyen_inc]

hi i was wondering is there any way i can breed a cali. king snake with a corn or rat snake? i have heard people doing some thing like this but i just want to make sure.

[Zoe]

First, let's establish the fact that corn snakes are aka red rat snakes. King snakes are an entirely different species. Even if you succeeded in producing eggs, the hatchlings would not be viable/fertile IF they even survive.
In short, don't do it. Get another corn snake or another cal king of you want to breed.

Zoe

[nguyen_inc]

ok thanks zoe! hahaha this was one of my wacky ideas. thanks ~John~

[Bartman]

and arnt they canabalistic anyways? They'd eat eachother

[marisa]

Actually, Kingsnake X Corn crosses are fertile and I believe its either Crimsonking or another breeder who mentioned this recently. Jungle corns (corn X king) are something thats created somewhat often.

Marisa

[Zoe]

If the offspring is fertile then you could go ahead and do it... but I wouldn't. It's one thing if it occurs in the wild naturally, or if it is simply breeding two different subspecies, but I find that cross a little abnormal.

Zoe

[Simon]

kings and corns could breed and be fertile. The F1s would also be fertile and be able to breed too

a king x corn would be called a jungle corn.
But you'll definately need to keep a close watch on the king when you're putting the two together to breed.
The king could definately eat the corn...
and if you do get hatchlings from this pair, PLEASE lable them correctly if you are thinking of selling it out to the market....
I have seen some people labeling things totally incorrectly...
so labeling them as a jungle corn would definately help out. Some people, like myself, don't really like hybrids too much. Maybe the most that I can take is a rat x corn (but corns are red rats...) so this I can accept...but other than that...I can't really accept them....things like (kings x corns, milks x corns, garters x corns) so I do not want any of these gene pool running around my house.....and I woudl definately not be happy if I find out in a few years time that they are actually these crosses.

So MAKE SURE YOU LABEL THEM CORRECTLY
and
when breeding the king and corn together...keep a close eye on them...
my advice...
get another corn and/or king to breed with...

[marisa]

I didn't say it was normal or abnormal. I just said they wouldn't be infertile or have a hard time surviving like you seemed to think they would. They are common, usually quite healthy, and fertile.

Marisa

[Katt]

Like all things buyer beware! I produce jungles, most people know I produce jungles. I advertise them as such, and I know where all the ones I've produced are. There's no mistaking a 50/50 jungle corn. I personally have issues with 75/25 crosses, as they look mostly corn, or king, depending on which has the most percentage. That's not a cross I would do b/c I think a hybrid, should look like a hybrid.

It was Mark IsBell who affirmed the fertility of jungle corns. The great thing about breeders like Mark, and myself, is that we're totally open to the fact we breed hybrids. Now if someone wants to question the purity of the rest of my stuff, then I could stay stuff a shoe in it buddy! There's pure and there's hybrids, as long as you trust and know who you are buying from this shouldn't be an issue.

Hybrids themselves are not the problem, it's the people who are hiding the straight facts on their stock. Someone who would lie about the purity of an animal would just as likely lie about the sex and feeding habits too.

As herpetoculture moves towards "designer snakes", hybrids will become more and more common. That is a fact. The best way to "combat" the hybrid problem is to be educated and educate. Not everyone should breed hybrids b/c not everyone is willing to keep taps on their animals.

There is no danger of hybrids "taking" over pures. My corns right now are pure corns, and ten years from now they'll still be pure corns, and in those ten years, they'll have had many clutches of pure corns.

[vanderkm]

Just to support what others have said - cal kings can be bred to corns to produce 'jungle corns' that have characteristics intermediate between the species. The 50/50 are quite distinct from either corns or kings as the photos show and many people who beed ''jungle corns' produce them from breedings of 'jungle X jungle' which reduces the chances of cannibalism when you pair a corn with a cal king. While the males are typically more interested in breeding in the spring, the females are more concerned with feeding and a big female cal king will make a meal of a male corn while he is thinking of other things.

Just wanted to share a couple photos of some- you can see the king shape of the head and the bright yellow bands but the corn influence in the red saddle color of the albino and the red tones in the normal jungle corn. As Kat says - whey you cross back to either parent species, it gets harder to tell them from pure corn or king - so the importance of labelling.

mary v.

an adult albino male
http://www.ssnakess.com/photopost/data/3067/63nov_26_kipling.jpg

Two offspring - a normal colored one and an albino
http://www.ssnakess.com/photopost/data/509/6303_Nov_11_Sting_reduced.jpg

http://www.ssnakess.com/photopost/data/509/63Bangle_Sept_25.JPG

[nguyen_inc]

oh cool so i guest its possable....hm..... should i use a male king and a female corn so the king wouldnt try to eat the corn or it dosnt matter?? and can more pics be posted?? thanks everyone

[C.m.pyrrhus]

A king as any sex is a snake eatter. I think the best bet is to use a female king and male corn. Due to a larger egg size, the female king would be able topass them easier. It is something I have never done myself though. Although, I would recommend king to king and corn to corn....

[Nett]

As far as I know ...I was one of the 1st to breed "Jungle and Albino Jungle Corns" in Western Canada in 96 ......I used both male Cal Kings with female Corns and male Corns with female Cal Kings .......I found that neither one over the other was easier to get to breed. The F1 babies are fertile and the F2 babies have a different pattern for the most part....more aberrant then the F1s ....and the F3s I have bred ,some have turned out looking like the super corns that have been produced in the states......These babies have allot of the corn makings......All the babies I have kept back and bred that have shown this type of color and pattern transformation have been sibs from the 3 unrealted orginal pairs ......really kinda neat ;) So u do have to be very careful when breeding hybrids and make sure that is how u sell them ;)