definitions

Albino - a snake with absent or deficient melanin. common name for "amelanistic. See tyrosine-negative and tyrosine-positive.

Amelanistic - having no melanin.

Anerythristic - having no red color.

Axanthic - having no yellow color.

Blister Disease - an infection usually seen as red/puss filled blisters on the belly. This is typically caused by unclean conditions.

Captive Bred - snakes born to parents who are in captivity.

Captive Hatched - snakes which were taken as eggs from the wild mothers and hatched.

Codominant - a gene that causes the homozygous form to look different than the wild type and the heterozygous form to have traits of both.

Crepuscular - refers to animals which rest during the extremes of the day, but are active during morning and night. Usually they they are inactive during the hottest and coolest part of the day. they usuall come out at dawn and dusk.

Diurnal - refers to animals which are active during daylight hours and rest during the night.

Dominant - a gene that causes a snake to look different than the wild type and where the homozygous form and heterozygous form look the same as each other.

Dbl. Het. - double heterozygous

Double Heterozygous - being heterozygous for two different traits

Ectoparasite - external parasites that can be observed crawling on the snakes body.

Endoparasite - internal parasites.

50% Possible Het - a snake that comes from breeding a heterozygous snake with a wild type. Statistically, one-half of the resulting babies are heterozygous. Until their genetics are proven, each of these babies are known to be 50% possible het.

Gene - unit of heredity that determines the characteristics of the offspring.

Genetics - the study of heredity.

Heat Mat - can either be human heating pads set on low, or plastic ones made specifically for animals

Heat Pits - Part of some snakes group of senses. They are located on the upper and/or lower lip.

Heredity - the transmission of genetic characters from parents to offspring.

Herpetoculture - the hobby of keeping and breeding reptiles and/or amphibians.

Herpetology - refers to the scientific study of herptiles.

Herptiles - refers to either reptiles and/or amphibians.

Het. - short for heterozygous.

Heterozygous - having two different genes for a given trait. Such a snake with one recessive, mutated gene looks normal, but it can pass the gene on through breeding. A heterozygous snake with one dominanant or codominant,mutated gene looks different than a wild type because of that gene.

Hide box - an enclosure with one or two openings in which you animal can hide and feel
secure.

Homozygous - a snake where both genes for a given trait are the same. Even recessive genes, if they are in a homozygous state, will affect how a snake looks.

Husbandry - the business or occupation of husbandman or farmer; tillage or cultivation of the soil (also including the rearing of live stock and poultry, and sometimes extended to that of bees, silkworm, etc.) agriculture, farming.

Hybrid - the offspring of two different species

Hygrometer - is a humidity guage.

Hypomelanistic - a snake having less black nd/or brown color than a wild type.

Jacobson's Organ - is the sensor located in the roof of a snake's mouth. The snakes take particles out of the air with their forked tongue, and the Jacobson's Organ interprets these particles and tell's a little about the snakes environment.

Leucistic - a pure white snake with dark eyes.

Melanin - black or brown skin pigmentation

Melanistic - abnormally dark, due to increased melanin.

Mouth Rot - an infection in the snake's oral cavity. Typically caused by unclean conditions and or trauma to the mouth. It usually appears as a white cottage chees like formation, or as dry scabs in/or around the oral region.

Mutation - an abnormal gene that under certain circumstances can cause a snake to be born with an appearance other than the wild type.

Nocturnal - the tendency to rest during the day and be active at night.

Offspring - babies

Possible Het. - a snake from a known breeding that has either a 50% or 66% possibility of being ht. for a mutant gene. this is a great and inexpensive way to obtain a snake with the genetic makeup to produce much more valuable snakes.

Quarantine - a period during which persons or animals who might serve to spread a disease are kept isolated from the rest of the community.

Recessive - a gene that affects a snake's appearance if it is present in the homozygousstate. A heterozygous snake carrying a mutated, recessive gene looks noirmal.

Snow - a snake that is homozygous for both albino and axanthic or for some other species albino and anerythristic.

Tyrosinase - an enzyme needed to synthesize melanin.

Tyrosinase-negative - an albino whose cells lack tyrosinase, producing a white and yellow or orange snake with pink eyes.

Tyrosinase-positive - an albino not able to synthesize melanin, but capable of synthesizing tyrosinase, which results in lavender-brown skin color.

Wild-type - the way a snake usually looks in nature (normal)

Xanthic- having more yellow color than the wild type.