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The biggest misconception holding people back from selective breeding efficiently, is by far thinking morphs have variation.
The only way a morph can have variation within the gene itself, is if its polygenic genes and theres some secondary interaction happening somewhere to cause variation. I cant think of a single morph that acts like theres a secondary gene attacked to it that sometimes expresses in a different way. The issue comes from seeing so many different looks from a morph. Naturally people start to think morphs have variation in phenotype expression. Technically they do, but the cause of that variation isn't within the gene itself. Tigers, and marbles are the most notable for obvious variation. Ocelot is another gene that no two really look alike. The thing those three have in common is they are pattern structure altering morph. The reason no two look alike is because no wild type pattern looks alike. No two patterns are the same. Kind of like finger prints. All finger prints look similar but no two are the same. Just like, no retics have identical back patterns. So its impossible for tigers, marbles, and ocelots to be identical. They alter pattern structure but all individual patterns are unique. Every tiger, marble, and ocelot is unique. This is where the variation comes from. It has nothing to do with the morph and everything to do with the traits that determine the specific pattern of each individual retic. This is the first roadblock to selective breeding. Which is, not understanding what you're actually trying to manipulate. Breeders make the mistake of trying to manipulate the look of a retic by adding a morph only. It does manipulate the look of a retic, but only so far as the morph can change the specific part of the color and pattern it affects. Thats where the morphs ability to change the look of retic stops, and selective breeding begins. Selective breeding is the manipulation of both color and pattern but also of morphs as well. You cant manipulate the tiger gene without adding the polygenic traits to get the change you want. There are potentially thousands of genes on a chromosome and hundreds to thousands of locus with gene clusters, that effect the pattern and color of retics. Which chromosomes have the genes that morphs change and whats the number of possible pattern and color outcomes for variation of the typical phenotype expressed, we have no idea. I can tell you there is predictability of morph expression when combined with certain wild type looks. In another article i talked about what i consider to be the seven aspects of back pattern structure that determines its look and also determines the look of the morph. Those seven aspects are thickness of black diamond shape diamond count diamond width diamond length proximity of diamonds to each other proximity of diamonds to the rosette These are the seven aspects of back pattern structure iv identified as being the determining factors that control the individual look of a morph. This is where the variation in morphs comes from. Its not coming from the morphs themselves. The aztec morph has been at the front line of the selective breeding debate. Mainly as a question of why dont US aztecs look like the aztecs overseas? The answer is simple. Lack of genetic diversity. There is far more genetic diversity in retics overseas than in the US. Outside of super dwarfs, theres not been many localities added in for genetics out crossing. And super dwarfs are probably the most naturally inbred retics there are. Not only is there an issue of lack of genetic diversity in the US. There is also a lack of polygenic trait diversity in the US. Keep in mind all albinos came from one snake. Most retic morphs came from one snake. So theres really only a handful of different polygenic traits in the morph combos getting produced. Take an albino gc sunfire. Thats three genes that have been bred to everything and to each other hundreds of times. Theres no chance for different polygenic traits getting added. Its the same genes getting bred back to each other. With no variation in traits theres no real variation in look. Thats why regardless of who makes a mainland albino gc sunfire they look the same. Plus the limiting effects those genes have on color and pattern they arent going to help. This is the polygenic trait bottleneck existing in most breeders collections, causing the mediocre looks. Theres a reason, if you lined up marbles, tigers, platinums, sunfires, ect from a lot of different breeders collections, you wouldn't be able to tell them apart. Now if one of each from my production was added and you were asked to pick out which ones are from Rodney Boalich. Theres about a 100% chance you could pick out which ones i produced. My production looks noticeably different from other people because my collection of retics has noticeably more genetic diversity. That allows me to selectively breed in a way that makes color and pattern manipulation easy. Im not fighting against ten generations of inbreeding. Its a lot easier to change the way a morph looks when every chromosome isnt packed full of the same secondary traits. Understand that diversity seen in a morph isnt a function of the morph, but the result of the alignment of secondary traits. Next, realize that the past breeding practices of retics has bottle necked the genes that create variation. Which limits selective breeding by taking away different possibilities of morph variation. Now taking into consideration what a morph actually does. Chances are it takes something away, not adds something. Or it exaggerates the typical look in some way. Even this usually comes at the cost of some color or pattern. This is how you move forward with a plan for selective breeding. The mistake of thinking morphs have inherent variation is usually followed up with thinking they are adding pieces to the genetic puzzle. This has brought us more striped out, no contrast, patternless retics, then i can count. Once you move passed all those misconceptions, its time to start adding the secondary traits you need for morph manipulation. What you need to add depends on what you're trying to do. If you're trying to change back pattern in some way you need to figure how you are trying to change it. Lest take a marble for example. If you want a chaotic back pattern you have to pair up the right pattern traits. thickness of black diamond shape diamond count diamond width diamond length proximity of diamonds to each other proximity of diamonds to the rosette Those are the seven traits you need to look at. Marble basically exaggerates the look of the wild type while reducing black. For thickness of black. You want thick black since marble reduces black and the black is what you want the marble to shatter. For diamond shape. You want sharp or hexagonal with straight edges so you get a nice geometric look and avoid striping. For diamond count. You want high but if they are not sharp and bleeding into each out you can get striping. For diamond width. The wider diamonds will give longer lines to the connecting point. This means more black to be broken up. But if the diamond is more rounded you can get a striped marble. For diamond length. The longer the diamond the more of chance it stripes. For diamond proximity to each other. Some space in between is good to avoid striping For diamond proximity to the rosette. This isnt much of an issue for marble because of how the marble gene tends to pull the back pattern in tight to the top. Rosettes width and count will determine if the marble has a solid white stripe down the side or not . But that a different topic. I hope these perspectives on selective breeding and morph manipulation can help.
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The evolution of retic breeding in the US has been a long journey. From that first tiger x philippine breeding back in the 80s. To the import of dwarfs and super dwarfs in the 90's. Then the morph craze of the 2000's. Back to super dwarfs and dwarfs once interstate commerce was restored.
Finally to the retic industry's current stage of progression towards selective breeding of both aesthetics and size. Its been a long journey. Ive only been a part of the last 20 to 25 years. But in that time i have seen a lot of people and retics come and go. The people not sticking around isn't a big deal. The retics we've lost have been major and very unfortunate. As it stands now there isn't many wild caught retics left in the US. A lot of the wild caught localities we still have, passed through me, one way or another. So i know there isnt many left. Pure localities are seen as much more important than they ever were. People are starting to understand we dont have enough. The retic industry seems to be reaching maturity. Theres much less random breeding's being done. Very few breeders look at making worlds first, regardless of how bad they look, as a viable or responsible path forward. The Prehistoric mindset has finally went the way of the dinosaurs. It use to just be me online, making fun of how bad morph combos look. Now its commonplace. So much so that i don't even need to run my mouth anymore. Retics are a microcosm of the ball python industry. We have seen the ball python market go from cheap normals, to more morphs then you can count. All while selling one important idea. That theres millions to be made. I suppose there is if youre selling mice, rats, and racks to supply the breeders with their overhead there is. The ball python industry really transformed the entire reptile industry into something different. It promised the reptile hobby a sense of legitimacy by becoming a real industry. Unfortunately it created more of a factor farming mindset in reptiles, and a morph stacking business model, then it legitimized anything. That business model had a fatal flaw. Which was, its stability was dependent on a constant flow of new morphs being introduced. This was a scarcity overvaluation metric for pricing. That, while creating very high prices for anything new, by its nature was a crushing blow to prices of anything being produced in even moderate numbers. Thus was born the accidental ball python pyramid scheme. It seemed like all markets within the reptile industry soon suffered the wrath of the ball python business model. At least species with any significant number of morphs. The retic industry suffered more than most. With the species itself being missed through the dense forest of morph combos and worlds first. The rise of the big yellow banana became the ultimate goal in retics for a long time. There was no need for breeders to believe their own eyes. Hype and facebook likes would fill the void left by no color, pattern, or contrast. Until the prices crashed. Then the reality of aesthetic value could no longer be ignored. Facebook likes are cheap. So is a fucking sick bro, comment left on a post. But $2500 for a retic that looks like trash is just too much of an investment. That was the hard lesson the retic industry had to learn and is still learning. Im the most canceled person in retics and possible all of reptiles. I dont know of anyone else that has had as many big names in the industry actively try to get people to not do business with and deplatform them, as they have me. Not even samson. Ironically a lot of the people that have tried to cancel me were all doing business and breeder loans with samson. They didn't even have the decency to say anything when the evidence of abuse came out. Outside of maybe lying about what they knew or their involvement in business relations. Some were actively working with samson to try and go after me at the time. Just REACH OUT to anyone in retics and they can confirm that story. This is the behind the scenes nonsense that's being going on in retics for a long time. Me shinning a light on it has never went over well. Nor has me warning for years, that the mainland market was heading towards a cliff. The scarcity overvaluation model suddenly switched from morph combos, to the only 7 localities that are scientifically proven by science to only get the size of a bull snake. Dont believe me just ask science. Just dont ask me to spell their names right. This created the bubble that created the price drop. All while devaluing the already declining mainland market. While all of this was happening, ideas of selective breeding and the intrinsic value of pure localities were starting to make their way into the retic market. I both arrogantly and correctly take a lot of credit for both of those ideas becoming mainstream in the retic industry. At least among the new breeders and keepers. I put selective breeding for polygenic inheritance on the retic map, for color and pattern. That statement albeit egotistical and braggadocios, is factually accurate. Basically what im trying to say is. I am Retic Jesus The other thing im trying to say is. The ideology behind retic breeding is changing. People want to make the best looking retics possible at a reasonable size. The last 10 years of Eric lee's work has demonstrated that its possible to make small retic morphs if you're willing to put in the time. The last 10 years of my work has proven its possible to manipulate the phenotype expression of normals to the point they look better than most morphs. Its these two paths that are being seen the way forward. With the goal of combining them. Thats why i say the retic industry is maturing into what it needs to be, to stabilize. Unfortunately with stabilization there comes some losses. Those losses will be the mainland market. When a new product becomes available, if its a better product, the old products will get replaced. Thats just how business works. Its going to be hard to make a compelling argument for a mainland morph when you can get a better looking smaller version. This isnt an attack on mainlands. Its the progression of retics. Think of it like this. Try to make an argument for a white phase super tiger titanium over an indo sunfire anthrax. You cant do it. The one looks so much better than the other. Even if you offer someone the titanium for $100 and the anthrax is $10,000, they're not going to take the titanium because thats not what they want. Now try to make an argument for an indo sunfire anthrax over a 50% super dwarf 37.5% ternate indo sunfire anthrax. Theres no argument to make besides prices. Aesthetic value and smaller size will win most of the time. Aesthetic value and smaller size turns all retic projects into long term projects with really no end. This will create stability. You can always add more super dwarf blood and you can always add some different patterns and colors with traits. This new way forward in retics offers something the scarcity overvaluation system cant. Which is progression. Scarcity overvaluation starts high. It sets the ultimate value on there being a very limited number available. Which causes a system of value that can only be reduced by every new one made. Production can never add value. Whereas a system built around aesthetics and size can add value via production. Every time a locality makes a morph look better, value is added. Every time super dwarf blood makes a morph smaller, value is added. How can mainlands add value. Unless its a pure mainland locality it cant. The current successful ball python breeders are focused on aesthetic value. They are no longer basing their breeding's around creating more and more of something that only loses value the more its produce. Retics are now going that way. Nobody cares about a worlds first if it doesnt look good. The direction the retic industry is going with aesthetics and size being the priority will also limit production. Breeders are more focused on making the best looking version of whatever project they are working on. They are no longer trying to produce and sell as many as they can ,before prices come down. Breeding retics was a race to the bottom. Now its a competition of quality. |
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