imbricata - anyone keeping

[Noxious]

G'day

Is anyone else keeping the SW carpet python?

picked up a yearling on the weekend, still a little snappy. But that's ok.

I have read that females can get roughly 4x the size of males at maturity, have people found this to be true?

haven't probed mine yet so not sure on the sex...

Will get some pics up tonight.

Anyone with any personal experience please share...

Alex

 

[pugsly]

Lots of people keep them, but they are still relatively rare in captivity in the Eastern States.

Not sure about the 4x size thing, pm pythoninfinate has bred and kept them for ages.

 

[hugsta]

Have you got a pair noxious or more? Can you PM me the details of the seller. I am interested in getting some of this species if they have any more.

 

[Pythoninfinite]

If you want imbricata Huggie, PM me - I know several breeders in WA, not sure what's available now in WA, but can point you in the right direction for the coming season. Be prepared to pay though, including the $180 export permit fee to CALM.

Certain populations of imbricata demonstrate a big size difference between the boys and the girls, for example those on Garden Island, just south of Fremantle, where the boys may be fertile at 1m, and the girls may reach 3m and eat tamars routinely.

Jamie

 

[hugsta]

Would like to try and source them locally first Jamie. Thanks for the offer though and I will keep it in mind. May be looking to get some after I sell of few of this coming seasons hatchies.

Cheers
Daz

 

[Pythoninfinite]

OK, see how you go Daz, keep me posted on progress! Haven't ever seen them bred locally recently, although i did it myself here in Port in 2002 (2 clutches!). You'll need to PM me "elsewhere" too, PMs don't seem to be working here for me atm!

Jamie.

 

[pugsly]

Id be interested too Huggy, so if you get them from WA let me know, will save on CALM costs anyway..

 

[hugsta]

Thanks Jamie, will PM you at the nearest other location......LOL
Will do Pugs. I came pretty close to getting some from WA with another mate not long ago, but we never heard back from the guy. Not only that, he wouldn't gaurantee the sex of the animals, he wouldn't even probe them, so was a bit of a risk buying in 5 snakes that may be all males.

 

[Pythoninfinite]

Yeah, you can get 5 animals for your $180 CALM fee, so bulk is the way to go!

J.

 

[Vipercat]

Noxious
Check out http://www.naturebase.net/plants_animals/reptiles/advice/pythons.html for info on SWCP. I have a South western carpet python also but mine is only 6 months old at the moment and currently measures 50 cm

 

[Noxious]

Only have the one.

Took it out for a bit of handling last night, angry angry little snake.

It has these awesome stripes running down it's belly, must remember to get pics tonight.

 

[Noxious]

What size do these guys usually get to? are they a bigger or smaller carpet?

My guy is a yearling and about 2 and a half feet long, possibly a bit longer. Nice and strong for a youngen, and boy can he lay a bite! I'm sure he will calm with time. Although it is kind of fun to have a snake that is a little bitey... a bit different from my stimmis. I don't think they even know how to bite! very placid animals.

Alex

 

[Pythoninfinite]

Size wise, a bit dependent on the sex of the snake and the origin of the stock. Girls often get quite a bit bigger, can be up to 2.5m +, boys around the 1.5-2m, but they do keep growing throughout their lives, just slow down a great deal after they mature. Different populations from various parts of SW WA and the offshore islands can show significant variation in size.

Jamie.

 

[Noxious]

At what age do they mature.. males and females?

I wouldnt mind having a go at breeding them down the track when i get a few adults together, for now im having fun with my stimmis.

 

[chad]

i heard it was ~ 3 yo

ive got a cute little imbricata too mines ~40cm long, and we believe it is a she, but were not 100% as the vet wasnt very good at sexing the poor fella.

mine loves a snap when u try to get her out of her click clack (always gotta come from the top and she hates that. once out its totaly relaxed. she behaved pretty well for the 1st week, now its been 2 weeks, and i caught her having strikes at her click clack when i was having a peek .

i believe they calm down with time, coz the last thing i want is a 2.5m carpet latched onto me.

they say males are about 2m and femals about 2.5.

id prefer mine to be a female, coz size matters, and i can trust myself if working out a breeding loan.

we should all link up via msn if u guys are interested, ive always got questions about my imbricata to ask those who are willing to help.

 

[Pythoninfinite]

4yo is probably better for the snake, they have more body-bulk and can cope better with the very big physiological load egg-production places on the female.

Jamie.

 

[peterjohnson64]

Jamie, will they live in one of my aviaries?

 

[stencorp69]

Is anyone else keeping the SW carpet python?

picked up a yearling on the weekend, still a little snappy. But that's ok.

I have read that females can get roughly 4x the size of males at maturity, have people found this to be true?

haven't probed mine yet so not sure on the sex...

Will get some pics up tonight.

Anyone with any personal experience please share...

They are definately snappy but do give you plenty of warning with all the hissing and will calm down eventually (after a few tags) - I've found that the females are ravenous feeders and calm down more rapidly possibly because of the feeding association.

My females are definately bigger which (in my collection) is due in part to the fact that they eat so regularly. 2 of the females weight in at 2400gm and are 1800mm and 2100mm. The males are 1400gm and 1600mm.

I recently picked these two sw-carpets (m & f ) both in at 1100mm and 600gm. The female eats 4 times as much as the male and 2 months later is 200gm heavier .

 

[Noxious]

My guy not the best pic but ill get more soon...

 

[Pythoninfinite]

Ideally suited to aviary life Pete, very hardy and cope with very similar conditions to diamonds - especially cold winters as long as they have shelter. If I had more than the one imbricata that I have at the moment, I'd definitely prefer to keep them outside, and when we eventually move, I'll probably put her in a nice outdoor space - they thrive.

Jamie.