Boiga cyanea incubation method

[boipevassu]

Have just put six very healthy looking eggs from Boiga cyanea in the incubator.

Last time the hatch rate was a lousy 2 from 6 - a trait in Boiga I am led to believe. Of all the other eggs I put in the incubator only one failed.

There are lots of theories as to why this is, however those that hatched last time did so under their own steam, after the 100 days expected (no cutting or slitting), and are doing well.

The other fully formed young had simply not made it out. If slitting is the answer - when and how?

So, any suggestions on how to increase the hatch rate would be appreciated.

Cheers!

[JohnG]

I used to use moss with mine and got a good hatch rate up to 80%. It may be that the humidity is not high enough. The eggs wer burried in the moss and then left alone.
The dry moss was pre soaked for twenty minutes in warm water then the wet moss was put into a colander and lightly pressed to get rid of the excess water.
Incubater temperature was 82F.
When the eggs are put into the boxes in the moss weigh them lid on. then weigh them weekly and any drop in weight I would add water so as to get the weight back replaciing any evaperated water.

John

[Angi]

Karl Green has hatched out a few cyanea, Ive hatched out a few boiga nigriceps. Both of us have slit eggs when they were due to hatch, with good results.
Ive used moss and damp eco earth with no better results and lost one fully formed from each clutch as they were unable to break out.The nigriceps have hatched nearer day 110 at 78 - 79C. I now make a tiny opening in the egg at around day 105, at day 110 I will peel back a part of the shell, trying not to damage the membrane around the snake. Then cover this over with damp moss. The last time I did this I didnt lose any.

[paulh]

I don't know much about Boiga so maybe this is way off track.

In my opinion, slitting the eggs is not the best answer. Because nobody slits the eggs in the wild. They have to hatch by themselves. So maybe studying the conditions they face in the wild will help breeders get closer to optimum conditions.

As far as I know, Boiga are arboreal tropical snakes. So where do they lay their eggs? Tree cavities, perhaps? Does the hard shell protect against dehydration? If so, are breeders tending to keep the eggs too wet? When do the snakes lay their eggs? All during the year or seasonally? Comparing the incubation dates in the wild against the climate in the same area might give some idea of the natural incubation temperatures.

Without answers to the above questions, and just taking a wild quess, I wonder how Boiga eggs would do if incubated like green tree python eggs, on egg crate material over water at a temperature of around 90 F.

[boipevassu]

Weather is variable across their range, but the rainy season is at its tail end in most areas. I had eggs in July (when it is dryer) and now, having fed heavily and raised the humidity in their all glass viv and included lots of spray. It is possible that the thick eggs protect against both wetter and dryer conditions.

There is some suggestion that captive eggs are denser than wild eggs due to feeding on rodents and thus greater calcium deposition in captivity. That is a study in itself. I'll have to trawl the literature on calcium conversion from diet to egg.

The last eggs seemed completely turgid and had no give - they seemed to have outgrown their 'shells'. In the wild humidity is reported as high - and despite the height at which they may be laid they would still be surrounded by transpiring leaves if conditions become drier.

I think I will go with the moss and slitting suggestion as there are too many variables to control in the naturalistic approach - which is basically what I tried last time.