Key Technical Points for Breeding and Incubation Management of Meat Snakes

Snakes generally reach sexual maturity at 2-3 years of age, and the estrus season is in spring each year. Mating mostly begins at the first molting after waking from hibernation each year. Because the sperm of male snakes can survive in the female's body for several years, a female snake mates at most 3-4 times in her lifetime. During the mating and breeding season, sufficient food should be provided. Near the egg-laying period, pregnant female snakes and male snakes should be kept separately to maintain quiet and avoid disturbances from all sides. The egg-laying period of snakes is about July to August. During this period, as soon as snake eggs are found, they should be collected in time for artificial incubation, and should not be placed in direct sunlight, so as not to affect the hatching rate. Pregnant female snakes can also be placed in snake boxes to lay eggs. The collected snake eggs can be artificially incubated. In order to increase the hatching rate of snake eggs, artificial incubation is generally adopted.

So how are snake eggs artificially incubated?

First, choose fresh snake eggs. The snake eggs should be plump and elastic, and those that are not shriveled or damaged are best. If a clay jar, wooden box, or bamboo basket is used as an incubator, line it with fine sand about 30 cm thick. The sand and soil should be about half the volume of the jar (or bucket), and the ratio of sand to soil is 3:1. Place a thermometer horizontally in the jar (or bucket) to control the incubation temperature inside the jar (or bucket), generally between 17-27°C. The humidity is generally between 90%-95%. If there is no hygrometer, the principle of "squeeze the sand and soil into a ball; when released, the sand and soil break apart" can be followed. This humidity is relatively suitable.

Then place the snake eggs horizontally in the incubation jar (or bucket). Note that snake eggs must never be placed vertically. To keep the snake eggs fresh and moist, some moss, lotus leaves, sycamore leaves, or similar materials can be covered over the snake eggs. To keep the snake eggs at the corresponding temperature and humidity during development, measurements and checks should be carried out frequently during incubation, and fresh covering materials should be replaced. When the temperature inside the jar (or bucket) is below 17°C, old clothes, burlap sacks, wooden lids, or similar items can be used to cover the mouth of the jar (or bucket) to keep it warm. When the temperature is above 25°C, some water can be sprinkled into the incubation jar, but be careful not to wash the snake eggs with water, and turn the eggs once every other day. During incubation, the snake eggs should be checked frequently. Method for checking snake eggs: cut a hole in a wooden board slightly smaller than the snake egg, place the egg behind the hole, and observe it against lamplight or sunlight. If the egg shows no change, then it is an egg that will not produce a snake and should be picked out. If it is a normal egg embryo, network-like blood vessels can be seen. If the blood vessels appearing on the surface of the snake egg are not network-like but speckled, and after 1 week the speckles have not spread, and after half a month the eggshell becomes hard, and afterward mold spots appear on the outside of the eggshell, this kind of embryo is one that died in the middle stage and should be picked out; if the embryo has no blood vessels and becomes moldy or shriveled within 1 week, then this kind of snake egg is an unfertilized egg and should also be eliminated in time. Because snake species are not all the same, the incubation time of snake eggs also differs. The incubation time is as short as 25 days and as long as about 55 days. Snake eggs hatch into young snakes after 45-47 days, and cobra eggs after 55-57 days. The hatched young snakes should be picked out and placed in a mud jar with sand at the bottom for rearing, with food and drinking water supplied, so that they grow and molt.