Sistrurus m. streckeri subcaudal scale count

[David_F]

Hey everyone,

Just wondering if anyone knows if there is any difference in subcaudal scale count between males and females of Sistrurus miliarius streckeri. If so, is it a large enough difference to be fairly sure of the sex of an individual?

Thanks for any info.

-David

 

[David_F]

Okay. So, I ran across a paper from 1996 (I think) about sexual dimorphism in dusky pygmy rattlers from Florida. Can't remember the title or the author and I'm doing all my research from my phone. Difficult to do, to say the least. Anyway, the abstract says you can see a difference between males and females by looking at tail length but that's as far as it goes. Does anyone know of the article? Anyone have access to it?

 

[codykrr]

hey david. i wouldnt go by scale count personally. why dont you just go to apet store, buy a 3 foot piece of aquarium tubing thats 1.5 to 2 inches in diameter, close one end off. direct the snake into the tube via a funnel and a prodding tool of sort, this ill leave the tail end open for proper probing, while the snakes headis safly subdued. it cant go backwards, so ou will be safe. this is how i sexed my buddies king cobra.....and trust me that was very nerve racking.

also here is a link for some tips on probing.

http://www.corn-utopia.com/Corn Utopia on the Web/Sexing Snakes With Probes.htm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_HG1q42Ll7c



i hope it help man. and i still want to seeis tank! ha.

 

[David_F]

Been thinking of doing that, Cody. Right now I'm just interested in getting a guesstimation though. If it is a female I'd like to be as non-invasive as possible....coming up to the time of year for baby snakes for this species. If I think it may be male, well, not much reason to go probing and pissing him off. I didn't see any evidence of hemipenes in the shed skin (which is how I've sexed other snakes in the past, confirmed by probing) but I don't know if that's because the snake's just too small for me to see them or...... Anyway, if we get to September with no baby buzztails I'll go ahead with the probing. Would need to know the scale counts for males and females of the species for probing, too.

Anywho, I'm waiting, once again, to put it in a permanent enclosure. Got everthing sitting here but the thought of reaching in and grabbing a baby kinda makes me nervous. Don't want to have any die because I didn't find them, either.

Thanks for the links. Need to brush up on probing before I go diddling any snakes.

Later.

 

[codykrr]

oh yeah i was going to say...david..if the pygmy was pregnant...id definatly want a babie...