Tiger Striped Jungles
A Guide to Striping and Pattern inheritance
in the Jungle Carpet Python (Morelia Spilota Cheynei)
By Roger Lester.
Striping in Jungle Carpet Pythons is by far the most complicated mode of
inheritance when compared to other genetic striping in all other
python species .
Despite it being nearly impossible for me to document the ancestries of all the individual pairings, clutches and resulting individuals that I have produced over the years.
I believe I have consistently demonstrated that striping is a polygenic genetic
trait through my breeding programs aimed at pairing striped to striped and then
out crossing to prove the stripes are genetic by breeding striped to
non-striped individuals.
In writing this page I hope to give others a better
insight into how patterns such as striping etc are passed on and expressed in
Jungle Carpet Pythons (Morelia Spilota Cheynei). The expression of the phenotype (appearance) for any individual is dependent on the number of pattern specific alleles passed on from each parent. With polygenic traits, the alleles required to express the desired pattern trait (ie striping etc) are located in multiple genes making the frequency of expression for a specific pattern type extremely complicated and variable .
In Jungle Carpet Pythons, there are striped trait carriors that carry a single alleles for some type of striped pattern . It appears that for any striping to be visible on a
individual python, pairs of alleles are needed to be inherited ie. A single allele inherited from each parent will result in some type of striping but sometimes incomplete copies of the striping pattern are expressed.
This variation in pattern comes from allele sequences that constitute the form of a gene at a specific spot or chromosome. The allele appears to pass on the body patterns in a mixed up or jumbled up pattern code sequence, thus we see the complex pattern variations in carpet pythons. This is different to how other striped pattern genetics are inherited in other species of pythons ie. Co dom pattern traits or simple recessive pattern traits.
This polygenic mode of inheritance explains how Jungle Carpet pythons with a banded pattern "ie non striped" may carry alleles for some type of striping and by breeding a pair of these banded jungles together the resulting clutch will exhibit some type of striping usually in 1/4 of their offspring .
The main message here is that the pattern ancestry of each python used in a breeding program is critically important to how their offspring will turn out. The better you research the pattern ancestry for each python used for breeding a
specific trait, the easier it is to understand the outcome of clutches. The
clutch ratios will depend on pattern ancestry, By clutch ratios I mean the
proportion of individuals from any resulting clutch exhibiting banded ie
normal, semi stripes to single stripes to tri stripes to tiger stripes to super tiger stripes.
Briefly outlined below is the approach I have used to consistently produce
spectacular tiger-striped jungles. I hope that reading this will help others
produce better tiger-striped jungles also.
First, I
mated a male normal (i.e. non-striped) jungle to a female tiger-striped jungle.
Unfortunately none of the offspring (F1) from this mating had the tiger-striped
pattern displayed by the mother, thus ruling out Co-dominance as the mode of inheritance.
However, approximately 25% did have various amounts of partial striping and I
believed that these individuals were visible het for tiger-striped.
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Next, I mated
one of the male partially striped F1 offspring back to the mother (i.e. the female tiger-striped jungle). This mating resulted in 16 offspring (F2), 4 of which did display the tiger-striped pattern. The rest of the clutch consisted of 8 partially striped jungles (i.e. visible hets) and 4 normal looking individuals.
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Results from my breeding program suggest that the tiger-striped trait in Morelia cheynei is most likely Polygenic .
Through selective line-breeding, that is breeding the offspring back to the tiger striped parent, you can consistently produce clutches with tiger-striped
jungles as I have done here.
I would just like to mention that when conducting such breeding programs, one must realize the importance of out crossing. I believe it is essential to strengthen the vigor of the lines you are working with .
The above is just an example of the results from my breeding program which strongly indicate that the tiger-striped trait in Jungle Carpet Pythons is
indeed Polygenic. Through selective line-breeding, that is
breeding the offspring back to the tiger-striped parent, you can consistently
produce clutches with tiger striped patterns in Jungle carpet Pythons just as I
have demonstrated here.
A photo is worth a thousand words as they say, so in order to avoid
confusion about that exactly each pattern type typically looks like I have
compiled a series of photos from individuals I have produced over the years
showing the various patterns types and visible markers which denote the next
heritable phase of the striping trait as discussed in the above text.
Single Stripe
Tri Stripe
Tiger Stripe
Super Tiger Stripe
VISABLE MARKERS.
Sometimes incomplete versions of the striping patterns are expressed,
these are called visible markers. These visible markers show the next heritable
phase of the pattern. Visual markers appear as blotching or spotting patterns
along the body. When 2 jungles with visual markers for same area of the body
are bred together ¼ or 25% of their offspring will be now show striping in this
area of the body.
A Tiger striped Jungle Carpet Python showing visual markers for super
tiger i.e. the broken dorsal markings along back. The full Super Tiger dorsal
stripe is clearly seen in paragraph photo above.
Another different example of lateral visible markers.
Visual markers are blotching or spotting patterns along the body. When 2
jungles with visual markers for same area of the body are bred together .
1/4 of their offspring will be now show striping in this area of the body.
Breeding a pair of banded patterns together can produce stripes.
WHY ?
Jungle Carpet pythons with a banded pattern "ie non
striped" may carry alleles for some type of striping . Breeding
a pair of these banded jungles together will result in some type of
striping in 1/4 of their offspring. If both banded jungles are striped trait
carriers.
A single allele inherited from each parent results in some type of striping
in 1/4 of the clutch. It appears that for any striping to be visible on an
individual python ? pairs of alleles are needed to be inherited.
The trait starts off similar to simple recessive to get the trait for
striping expressed or visual.
Then you have visual markers indicating each stage of the inheritance.
Pattern assimilations
The semi stripe to single stripe to tri stripe to tiger stripe to super tiger
patterns are not separate pattern mutations . They are only intermediate
pattern stages leading from one pattern to the next until you reach the final
end pattern form. ie Super Tiger Pattern.
One pattern leads to another then to another with more selective inbreeding.
This creates various combinations of the above patterns in clutch
ratios.
Why ancestry plays the major role in clutch ratio variations.
Knowing the patterns in the family tree of each python
used in your breeding programme will give you a better understanding of
clutch ratios when you outcross your striped bloodlines to add new blood and
vigor from banded jungles to add to your breeding projects.
If you have a banded jungle that came from a clutch where
one parent was single striped and the other parent was banded . Then the banded
jungle will have a single copy of striping genes from that striped parent although it does not show these genes in their banded pattern. One must remember a banded pattern can carry single striping genes but to get any striping showing in an
individual python, pairs of genes are needed to be inherited.
The above text and images are copyrighted to.
Roger Lester .