Breeding Time

[Lisa]

when is the time of year for breeding a king?
also what is the process? cooling? no feeding? when and how much?

[crimsonking]

Lisa, while my time line may be diferent than what you'll need to go by, here it is: (When snakes are old enough) I begin by giving a final meal the first week in Nov. Allowing a 2 wk. or so period for their system to be clear, I begin to cool them gradually starting on Thanksgiving (easy to remember).. Here in FL. it is necessary for me to use a.c. to try and get temps to near 60 in the upcoming weeks.Then maintain at that temp.until gradual warm-up on Valentine's Day (again,easy to remember) Checking in on them once a week or so during the cooling period,to make sure clean water is available. Return them to a normal feeding schedule. After female's first shed, I put her in with the male.( I also put the freshly shed skin in with the male to help excite him) With kings, you need to monitor them carefully and watch for canniballistic actions. I leave them together for a few days only seperating to feed. Make notes of witnessed copulation so you can be ready for eggs in 6-8 weeks. A hide with moist sphagnum moss is put in with the female then. She'll shed her skin 6-10 days before laying, so you should have your incubator ready by then. Incubate eggs on vermiculite covered with moistened sphagnum @ 82F for 49-56 days and 80-100% humidity and....voila!
Mark

[Tim_Cranwill]

Good question and thanks for the answer Crimsonking! All my books speak more in vague terms as far as dates go, so it's nice to read something more specific.

[Lisa]

thanks for the info... what exactly is canniballistic action? is it normal for a snake to bite another in the the mating dance?

[crimsonking]

Yeah, it is normal for him to bite her,but,-- you will (hopefully NOT) see one or the other actually try and constrict the other in order to make a meal of it. Generally, the male will try and forcefully place the loops of his body over the female and sometimes bite to get a better hold. You shouldn't mistake this for a much more aggressive attack. One reason I put the shed skin in with the male before I put her in a few minutes later is to get him in the mood to breed-not eat. In my exp. it is the female that has been a problem. I place her in with him and not vice-versa. I also make sure both have been fed recently and are not overly hungry. What ssp. are you breeding?

[Lisa]

Nothing yet, still have to find a mate for my albino prarrie king, though i have considered cross breeding him against another ssp of king, but i'm not so sure i want my first breeding attempt to be a hybrid.