A
quality
Jaguar carpet python is a truly spectacular animal to see in person.
The trait is extremely variable and each year they're produced, something
new and exciting seems to surface. The Jaguar is largely
responsible for the huge rise in popularity of carpet pythons, especially
in the investment reptile arena. As far as python morphs go, carpets
are going to bridge the gap between Ball Pythons and Reticulated Pythons.
Other morphs have begun to surface over the
last few years, namely the Tiger Carpet
Python, as well as Granite Irian Jayas, Motley Irian Jayas, Zebra
Jungles, Albino Northwesterns, Axanthic Coastals, Caramel Coastals and
Hypomelanistic Coastals.
Jaguar Variations
There are different variations or
so-called "morphs" of Jaguars out there including Hypo Jaguars and Red Hypo Jaguars and
many more. So far, none of these have proven to be genetically
different and appear to be variations passed on by simple
inheritance. All things considered, quality Jaguars are
getting better every year and it's
still early in terms of selective breeding.
Striped
Jaguars
When we got our original Striped Jaguar male, we knew his pattern was different and noticed that there was no
pattern on his back, but we didn't put too much stock into it...we just
figured we'd breed him and see what happens. Sure enough, we
discovered in 2006 that the pattern is indeed genetic and is actually the
result of a stripe gene, very similar to the Tiger gene. Not only
did the Jaguars come out striped, but the non-Jaguar siblings in this
clutch were striped as well...very similar to a Tiger. We're not
sure where the gene came from, so we're just calling it "co-dominant
stripe" for now.
Designer Jaguars
(Jaguar
Crosses)
Some breeders, myself
included, have begun work to breed the Jaguar mutation
into other subspecies of Carpet Python,
such as the Irian Jaya and Diamond x Jungle carpets.
From what I've seen, these crosses offer very unique looks and I
feel that they're most definitely worth pursuing.
Click
HERE to
view the
Irian Jaya Jaguar
page.
Jaguar Color Change
All carpets undergo a dramatic color
change over the first few years of their lives. Jaguars undergo an
even more drastic change as they mature. The photos below show
one of my pure coastal Jaguars as a freshly shed hatchling and the
same animal at approximately one year of age. This particular Jaguar
was produced by breeding our original striped Jaguar to a classic
female coastal carpet. It should be noted that pure coastal
Jaguars are typically more of a subdued yellow than some of the
Irian Jaya and Jungle crosses.
Color Quality
Although all Jaguars will get better
with age, not all of them will look like the bright yellow carpet
pythons that many people associate with the Jaguar morph. The
color quality of the Jaguar and non-Jaguar parent both play a big
role in the quality of Jaguars they produce. For example, if
you start with an average Jaguar and breed it to any mediocre
colored normal female, you will end up with mediocre Jaguars. This
is why it's important to see photos of the parents and choose Jaguars from quality bloodlines.
