"rusty" coloration

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Posted by dg on December 17, 1999 at 18:37:59:

In Reply to: Re: here is a pic of a yearling, Adam posted by Adam Song on December 17, 1999 at 02:20:49:

: Looks to me like a juv lavender. I didn't coin the term lavender, I personally don't think the lavenders are perticularly lavender, they do have lavenderish coloration in places, but I wouldn't call them lavender. However, dispite that that is what they are called. If in fact your 'rusty', is a lavender (which I think it is) it's rusty blotches will darken as will the lateral portion of the animal. Eventually, it will get that lavender like color.

: Adam

Adam,
I don't think this snake, or any "rusty" rat is the same as the lavenders. An adult rusty is a dark brownish looking creature with orange eyes. At first glance they look like a "normal" black rat. I saw an adult on display earlier this fall in Columbia, SC, but unfortunately I do not have photos. Lavenders tend to be a more pastel looking snake, very light with varying shades of pink and "lavender". They look like albinos but there is almost always a hint of melanin in the eye. The first person I saw using the term "lavender" was Joe Street of Indianapolis, IN, although I don't know if it was he that coined the term "lavender" to describe them. I think that it would not be incorrect to call the lavenders "hypomelanistic" since by definition they do have a reduced amount of black. Based on what I have observed at herp shows, it depends on the source as to what the animals are called. But there is definitely a difference between the "rusty" and the "lavenders."
Later,
dg

Elaphe obsoleta

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: : : Looks to me like a juv lavender. I didn't coin the term lavender, I personally don't think the lavenders are perticularly lavender, they do have lavenderish coloration in places, but I wouldn't call them lavender. However, dispite that that is what they are called. If in fact your 'rusty', is a lavender (which I think it is) it's rusty blotches will darken as will the lateral portion of the animal. Eventually, it will get that lavender like color. : : Adam : Adam, : I don't think this snake, or any "rusty" rat is the same as the lavenders. An adult rusty is a dark brownish looking creature with orange eyes. At first glance they look like a "normal" black rat. I saw an adult on display earlier this fall in Columbia, SC, but unfortunately I do not have photos. Lavenders tend to be a more pastel looking snake, very light with varying shades of pink and "lavender". They look like albinos but there is almost always a hint of melanin in the eye. The first person I saw using the term "lavender" was Joe Street of Indianapolis, IN, although I don't know if it was he that coined the term "lavender" to describe them. I think that it would not be incorrect to call the lavenders "hypomelanistic" since by definition they do have a reduced amount of black. Based on what I have observed at herp shows, it depends on the source as to what the animals are called. But there is definitely a difference between the "rusty" and the "lavenders." : Later, : dg

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