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BuggyTheClown Emeraldman BuggyTheClown Emeraldman Mikayla-rose Emeraldman ExoSkelet0n Slove1106 |
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BuggyTheClown View Profile |
Srry to Ask but whats a morph
I would really like to know. 
Thanks Mike |
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| 08/21/07 07:20pm |
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Emeraldman View Profile |
Message To: BuggyTheClown In reference to Message Id: 1413567 Srry to Ask but whats a morph
If there is anyone who would like a quick crash course in genetics, they can read this. I hope I explain everything right, and if I am wrong, please correct me, I do NOT take offense to it! Morphs are reptiles that have been breed (or found in the wild) that display a recessive attribute in their appearance. That is to say, they have inherited a gene from their parents that was not shown in the parent. As an example, we’ll look at the genetics of Cornsnakes, something I’ve just recently started to study. Genes are the basis for what an animal looks (and in many cases, acts) like. In most cases, in order for an animal to display a certain color, it must have the genes required to produce it. In Cornsnakes, there are two main colors: Red and Black. Each of these are dominant colors. Let me explain to you the importance of Dominance and Recessiveness. Genes are usually grouped in pairs of two, each pair "coding" for a certain appearance. These pairs are called alleles. There are two different phenotypes, or characteristics you can see for each allele, or gene pair. Let’s refer back to the Cornsnake. Like I mentioned earlier, Cornsnakes have Red and Black for main colors. Therefore, this part of their genotype, or the genes that determine WHAT exactly you see, can be shown like this: RRBB. Let’s break that down. There are two alleles, or pairs of genes, that you see here. Each of the "R"’s tell the cornsnake to produce the color Red. In cornsnakes, the genes that tell the cornsnake TO produce red are DOMINANT, and we show that they are dominant by capitalizing the "R". The same for the other pair of genes. The "B"’s are capitalized, therefore they too are DOMINANT. This snake is said to be homozygous for the red pigment and for the black pigment. Remember this: the homo- prefix means that there is two genes that are exactly the same. The -hetero prefix means that there are two different genes in the gene pair. Therefore this "RRBB" genotype will produce a phenotype in which the snake produces both the red and black pigments. This snake has produced both the Red and Black colors, therefore it is considered a normal cornsnake. What would happen if the genotype of this cornsnake was "RRBb"? Let’s see. First, we look at the gene pair for the red pigment. Two "R"s. This snake is homozygous for the phenotype Red. What about the "Bb" though? Well, we have one "B", which we know is telling the snake TO produce the black pigment. What about "b"? Because it isn’t capitalized, we know it is RECESSIVE. A "b" gene is telling the cornsnake NOT TO produce the black pigment. Now what? One gene’s telling our little snake TO make black, and one’s telling it NOT TO. Who wins? Well, because the "B" gene is DOMINANT, it takes the leadership role, and the snake produces the black pigment. The snake still carries a gene that tells it not to produce black, but that gene is RECESSIVE and is hidden in the phenotype of the snake. Therefore, a cornsnake with a "RRBb" genotype still looks like the wild/normal cornsnake, but it is said to be HETEROZYGOUS for Amelanism. Amelanism is a condition in which an animal does not produce the black pigment. An Amelanistic, or "Amel", cornsnake genotype would look like this: "RRbb". It has two RECESSIVE genes that tell it NOT TO produce black, and since that means there are no genes telling it TO produce black, it doesn’t. Look around for a picture of an amelanistic snake. They’re neat :P. Now we know what morphs are. They are animals that have a different phenotype, and therefore genotype than what they would normally look like. As you learn more about the genetics of certain animals, you can predict the outcome of many things, like the outcome of breeding different animals together. You can also see how animals like snow cornsnakes are made. They are Amelanistic, and they are also Anerythristic, or lacking the red pigment. This means they make no major pigments, and are almost pure white, except for the faint cornsnake pattern on them. Google "Snow cornsnake" and see how these guys look! Well there you have it, your crash course in genetics. I strayed far off topic, but I’m bored, I have nothing better to do, and it’s probably going to help you quite a bit if you want to be a herpetologist! -Trav |
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| 08/28/07 07:26pm |
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BuggyTheClown View Profile |
Message To: Emeraldman In reference to Message Id: 1423300 Srry to Ask but whats a morph
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| 08/30/07 12:46am |
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Emeraldman View Profile |
Message To: BuggyTheClown In reference to Message Id: 1425128 Srry to Ask but whats a morph
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| 08/30/07 06:42pm |
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Mikayla-rose View Profile |
Message To: Emeraldman In reference to Message Id: 1425953 Srry to Ask but whats a morph
 thats alot of info lol |
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| 11/17/07 08:48pm |
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Emeraldman View Profile |
Message To: Mikayla-rose In reference to Message Id: 1517651 Srry to Ask but whats a morph
-Trav |
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| 12/06/07 08:09pm |
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ExoSkelet0n View Profile |
Message To: Emeraldman In reference to Message Id: 1538113 Srry to Ask but whats a morph
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| 07/18/08 09:40pm |
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Slove1106 View Profile |
Message To: ExoSkelet0n In reference to Message Id: 1801173 Srry to Ask but whats a morph
Hence 1.2.3 is 1 male, 2 females and 3 unknowns... |
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| 07/30/08 06:59pm |
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