Rich Z said:
My take on the hybrid possibility is that what are the odds that a gray rat snake (which are really not all that commonly bred in captivity) just happened to have carried this "ultra" gene in that one individual bred into corn snakes, instead of the possibility that it came from corn snake lines (which have been bred immeasurably more times, increasing the odds of a gene like this popping out? Yeah, I know anything is possible, but what is rationally realistic about the odds?
I don't think the chances are that different, and definatley not out of the "possible" range. Isn't there an amel in kingsnakes that is compatable with corns? Also genetic mutations have popped up even in snakes that arn't as widely kept. Just because one is MORE possible doesn't close the deal.
Again, I am still not sure if all Ultras are Hybrids or if some Hybrids were made with Ultras. I do know people have been mixing Corns with Grey Rats for at least 10 years, and I am sure longer, but that is only as far as I go back myself. (In the snake world anyway). I have 2 Grey Rat X Corn Hybrids, I see many posts of "frosted" corns that have been inbred for sometime as well I'm sure. What's even more interesting is that one of my Hybrids almost looks like it could carry the Amber gene. Pics of these known Hybrids below, both full siblings.
I don't own any Sunkissed, but I have seen them in person. The only thing that looks different to me is their heads. Their color and saddle count look like what I would find in a corn, and throw in the fact that they are "line bred" animals, they make sense to me. Same with Milksnake Phase, their heads can be a little short, thier saddle count is off,but the colors are true and we all understand that these are all line bred traits as well.
On mine, everything is off, color, saddle size and number, head, and even behavior. Others agreed, check out these poll results and note I did leave "none of the above" as choice.
http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=17882&highlight=hybrid
Again, I don't know if they are all hybrids but I think at the very least, some are. These have a high possibility of being mixed in as pure stock by people who don't know better or don't care. And just in case anyone gets the wrong idea, I am definately NOT implying anyone, its just something that's waiting to happen. Especially if no one talks about the possibility.