Inbreed reptiles!

[Patrick Wise]

So far no has mentioned inbreeding depression which is a real problem. For a basic explanation check out this website

http://evolution.berkeley.edu/evosit...breeding.shtml

enjoy

[gonesnakee]

Great link Pat, Mark

[SOS]

Keep in mind the fact that ALL snake morphs were inbred at one time. If it wasn't for inbreeding, you wouldn't see any of the great morphs we see today. Inbreeding is necessary for the growth of our hobby, within reason of course.

[monty bl python]

Originally Posted by K1LOS

I think it is tough for really religious people to accept inbreeding. I have seen them argue it in the past.

K!LOS

Technically everyone is inbreed if you go by a religious standpoint, because in the beginning there was only Adam and Eve

[JimmyDavid]

Not just from a religious point of view, but also from a scientific point of view. At the dawn of a new species, nature has to work with the available genetic variety there is, wich is none.

[Patrick Wise]

Actually, very rarely do species evolve from a single founder animal, island species excepted. When a species does originate from a few founder animals they experience a genetic bottleneck where mortality is extremely high as the deleterious genes are weeded out. Species usually evolve as parts of populations become isolated and progress along a new path or some new selective pressure acts on an entire population, take Darwins finches in the Galapagos for example. When conditions are dry and food is scarce finches produce eggs with small yolks, this triggers developmental mechanisms that result in overly large bills compared to the parent generation. This enables the young to feed on tougher seeds. This happens to an entire generation to the whole species in that locale, not just a few animals. Don't get me wrong, I am not against inbreeding animals for selective traits, more commonly called line breeding in other pet hobbies. But it needs to be done responsibly with respect to each species, what works for one may not work for the other. Individual species ecologies need to be considered. Recent studies on Green Iguanas suggest that clutch mates recognize each other versus non clutch mates, this may have profound implications with respect to avoiding inbreeding. Reptiles are such a diverse and polyphyletic group you can't generalize for the lot, you have to ask lots of questions and think and try and make an informed decision, like your doing on this forum.

[Invictus]

Great post again, Pat. You're right, responsibility must be taken, because if a reptile (I'll take snakes, because that's all I breed) is showing weaknesses such as small sizes, low fertility rates, deformities, etc., then the offspring will carry these weak alleles, and this will totally intensify when the animals are line bred. I think high attention should be paid to offspring of a line bred pairing as well for this exact reason - look for the weaknesses, and stop breeding that pair entirely.