I’ll be the first to admit that this snake was not completely black and white. It did have a tinge of yellow too. But the black, white, and yellow morph just didn’t sound right to me. This animal was a normal appearing adult ball python until August of 2001. During that time, this animal went into a shed cycle, and by the time she was done, she had undergone a dramatic color change.

Here’s the whole story: I acquired this female along with two others in the summer of 2001. I immediately set the trio up in my quarantine rack. Like most snakes that go through the stresses of airline travel, all three shed soon after their arrival. All three appeared normal had good appetites. In mid-August, this snake was going into a shed cycle as I was leaving for the Daytona Expo. By the time I returned, she had shed and looked like a completely different snake! For the first few minutes I just stared in to her enclosure in disbelief. She was black and white!

She held her odd coloration for close to three years. Going into the 2004 breeding season she started gaining brown pigment. By the end of the breeding season she had regained most of her regular color. Don't get me wrong - if you had a group of 100 normal appearing animals, you would still be able to pick her out. Her colors just aren't as drastic as they used to be. The black coloration in her pattern remains very dark. The brown tones that cover most of her body are close to normal coloration with exception of lots of white flecking. These few subtle features help distinguish her from a normal.

Honestly, I don’t think there is anything genetic to her color change. Even if this appearance is genetic, it would mean holding snakes back until they are adults just to see if they change. Either way, you better believe that I am going to hold back some of her offspring just to see if I can figure her out.