Strange shaped pupil.

Hi Everyone,
I was taking some new pictures the other day and when I was editing/cropping the pictures my daughter noticed something different about the pupil of our Avalanche Stripe. I have gone back and looked at previous pictures I have taken of her and sure enough, there it was. Being someone who likes close-ups and eye/portrait pictures I don't know why I didn't notice this before. Just about every picture I have seen and also every Cornsnake I have handled I have never noticed this before. I have always noticed the pupil in a Cornsnakes eye to be round but this one is very different. I seems the pupil is triangle or cone shaped. The snake in question does not seem to be blind and functions perfectly. She checks out her environment and also readily seeks out her food item when it is feeding time and will follow my finger tip when moved in front of here face. Anyway, I thought this was odd and wanted to share it with all of you to see if anyone else has experienced something like this and to also get some feedback as to what you might think is going on. Is this something genetic? I have other snakes from the same line and have not noticed this trait in any of them. I just found this a little odd and it has me intrigued. Thanks for looking and I await the replies.
Jay

Wow, that is interesting. No answer from me, but a request to post what you learn about it.

That is really interesting. It kind of looks like a catarac. Are you sure it can see ok out of that eye? How about some more pics?

Iv never seen anything like this before, but it is very, very cool.

Is the other pupil normal? Very odd!

Thats really interesting. Has there been any others odd like this with the parents before?

Kind of reminds me of a boas eyes. *gasp*...did PJ have a mystery project of boas and pink corns and didn't tell you? LOL

Well, I think it's cool looking, but I wish it wasn't that particular snake...

Maybe it's a hybrid Elaphe Cattus Eyeus :uhoh:, Seriously though are they both like that?

My radiologist wonders if it is this: (If she were a human, this is what they'd call it)

Congenital cleft in some part of the eye (commonly the iris, but may also occur in the lid(s) or pigment epithelium and choroid); caused by faulty closure during prenatal development; usually hereditary; secondary complication: cataracts. Depending on the extent and location of the coloboma, there may be decreased visual acuity, nystagmus, strabismus, photophobia, and a loss of visual fields.

wade said:

That is really interesting. It kind of looks like a catarac. Are you sure it can see ok out of that eye? How about some more pics?

Click to expand...

Piper said:

Is the other pupil normal? Very odd!

Click to expand...

bekers71 said:

Thats really interesting. Has there been any others odd like this with the parents before?

Click to expand...

I have taken more pictures, this time of both eyes, Oddly enough, the left eye is different as well, even more different then the right eye. I did not notice this in any of the clutchmates or the parents for that matter. I even checked another Avalanche for comparison and that pupil looks normal. I have taken pictures in different lighting to help to really identify what I am talking about. The snake acts perfect, eats perfect and seems to have no problem seeing. Very strange indeed. Hope I can get some help to actually identify what I am calling an "oddity". Odd yes? :shrugs:

bekers71 said:

Kind of reminds me of a boas eyes. *gasp*...did PJ have a mystery project of boas and pink corns and didn't tell you? LOL

Click to expand...

I know right Becky? Imagine that, a hybrid Cornsnake that gives birth to live young. That would be cool. No waiting for the incubation.

Nanci said:

My radiologist wonders if it is this: (If she were a human, this is what they'd call it)
Congenital cleft in some part of the eye (commonly the iris, but may also occur in the lid(s) or pigment epithelium and choroid); caused by faulty closure during prenatal development; usually hereditary; secondary complication: cataracts. Depending on the extent and location of the coloboma, there may be decreased visual acuity, nystagmus, strabismus, photophobia, and a loss of visual fields.

Click to expand...

Very cool Nanci, that is a very good hypothesis. I guess it would be conceivable for this to happen to a snake, after all, it does have eyes and vision. Just a little off topic though, I would prefer if you left my coloboma, nystagmus and strabismus out of further conversations as those things were shared to you with the utmost confidentiality. :grin01: :sidestep:
Jay

In these pics it looks as though the pupil didn't finish developing. I wonder what kind of impact this will have on its vision later.

BUMP!
Thanks for all the replies everyone but I am hoping to get a little more insight as to what might be going on here. I hope other experienced members might chime in and help with my curiosity. Thanks.
Jay

In humans, as the eye forms, it has an opening at the bottom. If it fails to close completely, that is the result. The name for it means keyhole. Snakes probably don't have the greatest visual accuity, anyway, so I'm sure it isn't a problem for her.