Ultramel Okeetee or different?

Just got this beautiful girl, 3 years old, at Daytona NRBE. She was sold as an Ultramel Okeetee, but wanted to see if anyone else has some different thoughts! I was not given any known hets. I’m thinking she is closer to Amel Okeetee but there’s so little white in there. Thanks for any help!!

6 Likes

Would need a photo of her eyes, but that does not look to be Ultramel or Okeetee to me.

5 Likes

Here are some more pics! Some with overhead lights off, some with lights on. Thanks!





8 Likes

She looks amel to me, but sometimes ultramels can be super light. I don’t think I’m seeing any melanin, though. And her borders don’t look thick enough to count as an okeetee.

7 Likes

I was thinking she looked more Amel than Ultramel too - I’m not seeing hardly anything else like her on the available animals on MM. She is very yellow and orange, with a very white belly and dark red eyes.

6 Likes

I agree, looks Amel to me, no Ultra involved. Might be from Okeetee lines but doesn’t qualify as an Okeetee.

5 Likes

I agree on Amel and the borders don’t look thick enough for Okeetee. Still a great looking snake!

5 Likes

If she’s very yellow/orange she may carry some kind of red-limiting gene like Buf. It’s more rare to find, but it’s a dominant gene that’s not always obvious in hatchlings so she could have been mis-ID’d early. Just a thought. Combined with Amel, it makes an orange snake.

5 Likes

thank you! she is so pretty but yeah having a bit of a time pinning down exactly what is going on here! Buf could be in play and I know her breeder did mention also working with diffused as well, so that could be interesting. I’ll be pairing her to a Hypo Peppermint this fall to see what happens, probably. thanks!!

EDIT: looking into Amel Buf throughout MM including older postings of sold animals, these look super similar to her appearance! the orange corn!

4 Likes

right, there was also one definite EROT at the vendor’s table too, so I know Amel is in the mix, and he works with diffused for sure, so I’m wondering if there might be some diffused in there. either way. she is pretty and she will be fun to keep around :slight_smile:

5 Likes

I’m agreeing with everybody else, lol. Pretty girl but I’m not seeing Ultramel. She looks visually Amel only, meaning two Amel alleles at that locus. Result is no melanin. Ultramel would mean one Amel and one Ultra allele, resulting in reduced melanin (but not no melanin). This snake doesn’t appear to have any melanin anywhere, at least in these pics.

Not really much in the way of borders, so not Oketee though she might come from Oketee lines as others said. That’s a selectively bred trait, so “het Oketee” isn’t really a thing, though you’ll see animals listed that way sometimes.

Whatever the case, she’s a pretty girl. If you enjoy having her, that’s what counts most!

4 Likes