Story of the Specter corn snake morph

The Specter Corn Snake: Origins and Genetics

Heliconia 19" female - South Mountain Reptiles
Origin Story

Kathy and Bill Love, of CornUtopia in Florida, originally acquired a unique corn snake from a pet shop in Naples, Florida. Kathy bred this specific snake to a classic "Ghost" corn snake (a combination of Hypomelanistic and Anerythristic traits).

The resulting generations produced Ghost-type corns with unusual patterns and colors. At the time, breeding trials could not identify a specific mutated gene that explained why these snakes looked so different from the classic hobby Ghosts.

 

Distinguishing Traits

While not every Specter snake possesses every unique feature, most morphs in this category display three specific traits:

  • The Collar: A band of ground color located between the head pattern and the body pattern. While rare in most corn snakes, this is very common in Specter types.
  • Pattern Aberrations: Over nine years of breeding, most Specters have exhibited markings that are connected or wildly shaped, rather than the distinct blotches seen on classic corn snakes.
  • Greenish-Gold Markings: This is rare even within the Specter family. Currently, it is estimated that only 15% of Specter types exhibit this unique coloration.

 

Inheritance and Breeding

The Specter is technically considered a variant of the Ghost morph (Hypo + Anery). However, the specific traits associated with Specters appear to be polygenic. This means they are not caused by a single mutation but are reproduced largely through selective line-breeding.

Because of this polygenic nature, breeding a Specter to a non-Specter usually results in offspring that lack the unique traits. To maintain the Specter look, breeders must generally breed out-crossed Specters back to unrelated Specter types. Without this selective process, it would take many years to recreate the standard pattern and color of the morph.


Related Variants


There are two main variants associated with the Specter line:

  • Heliconia: Named by Donovan Winterberg, a top producer of the morph. This name applies to Specters that also carry copies of red-modifying mutations.
  • Banshee: This is another variant of the Specter. However, Banshees are currently highly variable, with many looking almost identical to classic Specters. Future selective breeding is expected to stabilize this line.
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