k2power
Arachnoknight
- Joined
- Sep 26, 2010
- Messages
- 183
Yes the Great Plains rat is a recognized subspecies of the corn and I believe the keys morph is too. If not it is protected by FL as one I think. I used corn snakes as an example of what we should strive for in tarantulas....preserving the genetic variation as much as possible at a population level just as the rosy boa, dart frog and some corn snake enthusiasts are doing.
While matings of individuals of the same species form different places may produce the same species in offspring they are artificially genetically muddied and any population biologist will tell you they are useless scientifically. Researchers are unable to get meaningful information about a species morphological differences across its range, DNA variation within a species and so on from an unnatural cross. On a hobby level hybridization should be avoided but scientifically it has no real bearing in natural systems unless hybrids escape and establish themselves and begin intermixing with wild spiders. Then we have created a problem, otherwise it is just our vanity calling it bad.
I will use my pet store purchased pink-toe as an example. It is an Avicularia we all agree and could be A. avicularia as advertised but not definitely. After that we can't say decisively what it is. First off, the genus probably has not seen the last stroke of the splitters brush and new species will likely be eventually derived from ones with large ranges. Can we identify it definitively from a photo. I doubt it as it seems that many of the genus look remarkably similar so that is out. My next step in determinng what it is would be to try and track down my pet store's supplier to see if it is wild caught and can they tell me where it (probably not likely) or most of their "pink toes" come from. If I have that information I can look up the species accounts to see what species occur in that area. There may or may not be a good key in determing the species in Avicularia that could help too. If a few of these steps produce dead ends, I am left with an Avicularia that may be Avic avic but I do not know for sure. Is it ethical to mate it with another Avic avic to observe the process and undertake the challenge? Why not. Since we don't know exactly what it is I see no problem in mating it with another like it. I personally would give it a try but would be forthright about what it may or may not be when finding spiderlings new homes. They would be great for displays and mating with other questionalble lineage Avics but not for mating with those that have well documented lineages. Those should carry a premium price due to the work to keep the genetic makeup as close to natural as possible. But many people don't care about that and just want a pink toe because they are cute and docile and don't care that it may not represent a naturally occurring genotype.
I feel we should just enjoy our spiders and not worry so much about the little things and put more energy into more useful matters relating to tarantulas such as habitat conservation. We really need to SNITCH to mean something like...Starting Now International Tarantula Conservation Help. that should be our focus so that we don't loose some of the se species in the wild forever.
While matings of individuals of the same species form different places may produce the same species in offspring they are artificially genetically muddied and any population biologist will tell you they are useless scientifically. Researchers are unable to get meaningful information about a species morphological differences across its range, DNA variation within a species and so on from an unnatural cross. On a hobby level hybridization should be avoided but scientifically it has no real bearing in natural systems unless hybrids escape and establish themselves and begin intermixing with wild spiders. Then we have created a problem, otherwise it is just our vanity calling it bad.
I will use my pet store purchased pink-toe as an example. It is an Avicularia we all agree and could be A. avicularia as advertised but not definitely. After that we can't say decisively what it is. First off, the genus probably has not seen the last stroke of the splitters brush and new species will likely be eventually derived from ones with large ranges. Can we identify it definitively from a photo. I doubt it as it seems that many of the genus look remarkably similar so that is out. My next step in determinng what it is would be to try and track down my pet store's supplier to see if it is wild caught and can they tell me where it (probably not likely) or most of their "pink toes" come from. If I have that information I can look up the species accounts to see what species occur in that area. There may or may not be a good key in determing the species in Avicularia that could help too. If a few of these steps produce dead ends, I am left with an Avicularia that may be Avic avic but I do not know for sure. Is it ethical to mate it with another Avic avic to observe the process and undertake the challenge? Why not. Since we don't know exactly what it is I see no problem in mating it with another like it. I personally would give it a try but would be forthright about what it may or may not be when finding spiderlings new homes. They would be great for displays and mating with other questionalble lineage Avics but not for mating with those that have well documented lineages. Those should carry a premium price due to the work to keep the genetic makeup as close to natural as possible. But many people don't care about that and just want a pink toe because they are cute and docile and don't care that it may not represent a naturally occurring genotype.
I feel we should just enjoy our spiders and not worry so much about the little things and put more energy into more useful matters relating to tarantulas such as habitat conservation. We really need to SNITCH to mean something like...Starting Now International Tarantula Conservation Help. that should be our focus so that we don't loose some of the se species in the wild forever.