telling sex of snake - Experts Forum at VenomousReptiles.org

telling sex of snake	Reply
by melindaLouise on October 13, 2004	Mail this to a friend!
I know that you can tell the sex of the snake by probing but is there any other way that doesn't cause as much stress to the snake?

RE: telling sex of snake	Reply
by timberrattlesnake89 on October 13, 2004	Mail this to a friend!
On some snakes you just count the number of scales past the cloaca. It is hard and you would need to know how many you are looking for. Phillip

RE: telling sex of snake	Reply
by paleoherp on October 14, 2004	Mail this to a friend!
HI a visual identification can be used to determine the sex of a snake in many cases, some snakes show a marked gender differance in tail structure , this is apparent in rattle snakes and other larger snakes but its not always really distinguishable.in male snakes the base of the tail is usually thicker in genral and longer to accomadate the hempines. the snakes that are members of the family boidae, have an anatomical structure unique to them. small spurs, which are remnants of ancient pelvic girdle project from either side of the ventral plate in males these are larger , its quite obvious which one is the male. palpation is a method used in juvenile snakes and if done properly is quite effective . it must be carefully done not to damage the skeleton. begin by gently pressing down on the ventral side of the tail past the end of the hemipines with the base of the thumb. slowly role the thumb towards the ventral opening keeping firm and constent pressure . in males the hemipines will usually pop out. the use of probes will be done with someone who knows what they are doing it can cause a snake serious damage , in some cases they cause prolapeses in snakes and there is risk in infection . read up about it on the net about sexing snakes . SHAUN

RE: telling sex of snake	Reply
by BwViper on October 20, 2004	Mail this to a friend!
In most snakes the only way to be 100% sure is to probe them. I have been keeping snakes for 20+ years and they still fool me sometimes. Some will look like a male and I would almost want to swear it's a male, but probe it and it turns out to be a female. Goes for the other way around. Some snakes like Gaboons, Rhinos, puff adders, etc. you can tell by just looking at their tail. The male will have a very long tail compared to that of a female. But with MOST, not all snakes, the best way to be sure is by probing. Hope this helps. Bobby

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