albino coastal boa found !

[Rob T]

Just thought I would share this unbelievably lucky story with you all.
A few weeks ago I was standing on my brothers front porch talking to him by cell phone watching the sun-set. After hanging up the sky was near dark. I thought to myself this feels like good boa weather. So I jumped into my car and headed for the local hills. After driving about 3 miles I headed up a steep hill that had many cars coming down. I didn't want to search this road so I turned off the first available road. I quickly slowed down and watched the shoulder. I drove a few hundred yards when something caught my eye on the shoulder. It didn't look right. I started to pull forward when I noticed it move. I got out walked over to it and looked down. I could see the outline of a junvenile boa with it's head going into a small bush. I reached down and picked it up. I looked at it under the headlights and thought that it was extremely light. I quickly got into my car and turned on the dome light. What I was seeing couldn't be real. I knew what I was looking at but I was afraid this was going to be a dream. I saw it flick it's pink tongue out. So I put the snake away and drove up the road in shock. Approximately 50 yards up the road I saw a large boa cruising the shoulder. I got out and picked him up. I was to elated to see this guy because he was the dark coastal color and confirmed for me that the juvenile was indeed an albino. I drove for just a little while longer before I couldn't take it anymore. I drove back to my brothers and showed him the incredible find. My firs Riverside boa ever and it's an albino.

[aliceinwl]

Wow, that's awesome! You've got to post some pics!

-Alice

[pch101]

I would like to discuss the details about this animal in a little more detail, and I would like to document the finding on my website if that is ok with you. Do you have any more pics of it? Please feel free to e-mail me at pch101@cox.net, and if you would like to talk on the phone, I can send you my # then. I look forward to hearing from you!

[bluerosy]

Ya I would like to hear more about this as well. You can reach me at bluerosy@comcast.net or you can post pictures and other info here.

[Big Mike]

I'm proud to say that this is my best friend that found the albino. You've come a long way since our first Steens trip.

I miss you buddy.

[Otter_23]

Any update on this find?

[pch101]

"Any update on this find?"

Good Question.

[snakeyman]

yea, i want to see this snake, and you holding it! because i could have found a snow rosy going up my street(i live where they are native to hehe) but without a pic to prove it then it really didnt happen..... i sure wish i would find a snow. i would be very very happy...

[pch101]

"yea, i want to see this snake, and you holding it! because i could have found a snow rosy going up my street(i live where they are native to hehe) but without a pic to prove it then it really didnt happen..... i sure wish i would find a snow. i would be very very happy..."

Even if he does post a pic with him holding this snake, all it proves is that he is holding an albino snake. It does not prove he found it in the wild, or that he even owns it. I can post a pic of me with holding a snow rosy out at Whitewater, but it really does not prove anything beyond what you see in the picture.

I will say that I have very trustworthy friends that have seen the snake in person, and I have see pics, but I am still not convinced, as no one was actually there when he found it, and there is no way to verify it. Also, Rob just came out of nowhere. No one knows this guy from before this "find', but he apparently is an avid field collector, and he has supposedly been doing some hard core field collecting for many years. Of this I have no doubt, but I do doubt this story, and one of the main reasons is his total reluctance to answer any questions about this find, and his avoidance of my e-mails and phone calls. I am not that scary of a guy, but if this did not happen, I will find out.

One other thing that casts major doubt here is the fact that this snake looks to me like a Whitewater amel that has been plugged into a coastal rosy boa. It has normal eyes like the typical Whitewater amel. The "other" Coastal Boas, found not far from where he claims to have found his, are totally different looking Boas with bright red orange heavy patterns with red eyes. To me it looks like the Whitewater amel gene is responsible for this snakes pigmentation (or lack of it). Initially, I was going to document this find on my website, but I have changed my mind. I pulled what little info that I had, as I will not be a party to pulling some kind of hoax on the herp community. My gut tells me that this whole thing is just way to fishy, and I trust my gut.

Here are some pics of the actual specimen that were sent to me by from someone else that he sent them to, followed by a couple pics of a Whitewater amel that I have that looks similar but actually brighter.

[snakeyman]

thats very tru, finding any albino is the wild is very slim chance as it is... but right on the side of the road in the hills??? thats gotta be like a 1/100000000000000000 chance


nice looking rosy's you posted

[pch101]

The first two pics that I posted are the actual snake in question. In other words, that is the snake that he claims to have found.

[Otter_23]

I guess I would I was thinking that if someone had found this snake and were so excited to post it on forums than they would be just as excited to post updates and any info they had on it, but I've been wrong before. Just can't remember when :rofl: .
Mark Westberg

[Salton Sea]

yea, i want to see this snake, and you holding it! because i could have found a snow rosy going up my street(i live where they are native to hehe) but without a pic to prove it then it really didnt happen..... i sure wish i would find a snow. i would be very very happy...

Oh he definitely has the albino he claims to have found. I have been to his house and seen it. He even left the mite on it he says that was on the snake at the time he found it. He seems like a really nice guy, and like previously stated is one super dedicated field herper with an amazing combination of luck and skill for finding Rosy Boas. But having only met him once I can't really vouch for him(not that my word means particularly anything).

[Junkyard]

Did I get that right. He brought a wild snake into his home and did not clean the mites off? That is just begging for an aweful infestation.

[Salton Sea]

I only saw one mite, not mites. I asked him if he was going to extract it, he said no. He seemed to think it would help cooberate the fact that the snake was wild-caught. In all fairness, he told me about the mite before I saw the snake, so it's not like he made that up as a spare-of-the-moment excuse. He also showed me at least a dozen Rosys of various localities and I did not see a parasite one on any of the other snakes, and I was looking. All his snakes looked pretty healthy too.

[Salton Sea]

I also purchased a SF male from him and the snake didn't have any mites on it, but I quarantined it anyway. The same snake is doing great. Like I said I really have no real idea if Rob is telling the truth or not having only met him once, but he didn't seem like a greedy scammer-type guy. He discounted the snake for me(his idea) because I missed him on our first scheduled meeting and had to make a 2nd trip, but the reason I couldn't make the first meeting was entirely my fault.

[Dennis Hultman]

I only saw one mite, not mites. I asked him if he was going to extract it, he said no. He seemed to think it would help cooberate the fact that the snake was wild-caught. In all fairness, he told me about the mite before I saw the snake, so it's not like he made that up as a spare-of-the-moment excuse. He also showed me at least a dozen Rosys of various localities and I did not see a parasite one on any of the other snakes, and I was looking. All his snakes looked pretty healthy too.
The way you talk about extracting a mite sounds like you are actually referring to a tick.
Someone would not extract ONE mite, let alone leave ONE mite on a snake.

[Salton Sea]

The way you talk about extracting a mite sounds like you are actually referring to a tick.
Someone would not extract ONE mite, let alone leave ONE mite on a snake.

Well tick then. The thing was so tiny, you could barely see it underneath the scale of the snake and the snake was little more than a baby.

[pch101]

I do not trust him. Things are not adding up. Well they actually are but it is not adding up to what he would have us believe. Like I said his absolute reluctance to answer any questions that I have for him tells me something.

[Chris@TSE]

sounds like BS to me....

anyone who would intentionally leave a tick on an animal to prove it was field collected deserves a lobotomy....... lol. I cannot stress that enough.

Then again, anyone can place a tick on a snake....... Looks to have the influence of a whitewater amel IMO. Again, this screams BS, and I seriously doubt this animal was field collected, no way in hell.

[Sensinitas]

test.

[Sensinitas]

I have seen the snake and I believe Rob 100%, not just because he showed the snake to me, but because I dont think he is the kind of guy that would just make up this story to make himself look good. In my opinion, he has no bad intentions, and I dont think he is trying to fool anybody. I have done a fair amount of herping with him and he definately is an avid field herper. Like Ralph said he has other localities of rosy boas including California, Arizona, and Mexican rosy boas and they all look very healthy with no mites or ticks. Last time I talked with him, he was in the process of moving and said he didnt have any access to a computer or the internet, so maybe thats the reason he hasnt posted any more pics. Anyway, Rob is a cool down to earth guy and Im sure he is not making this up.

[Junkyard]

Well, tick or mite, I think the biggest mistake is leaving it on the snake. One mite can travel 12 feet in one hour. I have yet to meet anyone who would be willing to leave a parasite on a snake, let alone just for herping proof. Of course there is always an exception, I guess Robert is it.

[Chris@TSE]

Again, this is pure BS. Especially considering the messenger........

Who would take the word of someone who cannot even decipher the difference between a tick and a mite? Jeeeez....

Liking the guy does not make his claims legitimate, especially concerning you have little to no knowledge of the animal(s) whether you have seen them personally or not. How does that matter coming from you? Really?

Come on over, I'll show you something and give it a fancy story and name too.......

[Wilomn]

Sniff Sniff It's getting awfully fishy around here.

[Chris@TSE]

indeed....

[pch101]

I have to agree with Mike, the mite story is not helping to ad to Rob's credibility. Ryan, I think you are a great guy and that you are very trusting, but are you going to tell me that Rob has had no access to a phone for the last 8 weeks? I do not believe that his reluctance to return my e-mails or phone calls is a coincidence. Nor do I believe the fact that this "new" amel gene looks just like the Whitewater amel gene is a coincidence. I mean think about it, look at the Coastal Amels and then look at this thing.

How long have you known Rob? Do you personally know anyone that you trust that knew Rob for any amount of time before this big find?

Ryan, I could be totally wrong, but my gut tells me I am not, and my gut is usually correct. I am by nature an open-minded skeptic. I am willing to entertain the notion that this snake was actually collected in the wild by Rob, and I actually did entertain it for some time. It is the actual evidence, along with obvious avoidance of me and others, in addition to his using mites as supporting evidence, that makes me doubt him. So while the story may be true, I cannot accept it as fact without something more. Until then, I will remain skeptical. No offence to you Ryan. You are a good guy and a loyal friend. I admire that!

[Chris@TSE]

Yes, one could say loyal to a fault possibly.....

[Salton Sea]

Again, this is pure BS. Especially considering the messenger........

Who would take the word of someone who cannot even decipher the difference between a tick and a mite? Jeeeez....

Liking the guy does not make his claims legitimate, especially concerning you have little to no knowledge of the animal(s) whether you have seen them personally or not. How does that matter coming from you? Really?

Come on over, I'll show you something and give it a fancy story and name too.......

I guess this is mostly aimed at me.

Exactly where did I offer an opinion on whether or not the snake was indeed a wild caught animal and/or the true locality of the snake judging from my experience? The parasite on the snake was there, I asked him about, he gave me his answer. All this I related here in my previous post, but I never offered my opinion on whether or not this was a reason to believe him. All I did was say that he talked about the parasite beforehand to eliminate the obvious conclusion that he made this up just as an excuse to cover up a mite/tick problem.

I provided some insight on the guy's character judging from the one time I met him, I assumed some people here might be interested in any dealings other people might have had with him. Was I wrong in believing that? I also fail to see how my inexperience in certain matters of reptile husbandry makes my word suspect when describing my dealings with an individual. But in any case you basically told me that I expected my word to be taken as gospel, when I clearly stated that my opinion on this matter may not mean particularly anything to you.

[Chris@TSE]

I provided some insight on the guy's character judging from the one time I met him

I'm glad you did not meet bill leverton or a few others for that matter "one time".... Seems fishy that after meeting someone only once you can sit there and vouch so highly for someone... Oh well, to each thier own! :)

[Junkyard]

When I go out looking for herps I bring a notebook in case of anything interesting I find necessary to log(time, location, species if known, size, and other points I find interesting). Along with that I always take pictures of every reptile I find, dead or alive(I find it important in that I know the glossy snake and the spotted leaf-nose snake are the most ran over snake in the Shelter Valley are out here and I have pictures to prove it) My camera also has a video camera feature along with my cell phone having a video camera feature. If I were to find any albino snake in the wild you better believe me I will be using those features as well. Also I always have another person with me.

This Robert may be a really nice guy and an extremely avid herper, but with out proper documentation, it is hard to believe his story.

[Salton Sea]

I'm glad you did not meet bill leverton or a few others for that matter "one time".... Seems fishy that after meeting someone only once you can sit there and vouch so highly for someone... Oh well, to each thier own! :)

I am not sure if you are having trouble absorbing some of this thread's text, so let me help you out. The very last sentence in my first post:

But having only met him once I can't really vouch for him(not that my word means particularly anything).


I also never took a stance on whether or not I believed his story to be true. Again, I just related my experience with Rob since this thread concerned him. I had a positive business transaction with the guy, something I am sure everyone here can appreciate with all the jerks out there.

So what exactly seems "fishy"? Do you believe that I be him or recieve benefit by seeing his claim founded?

[pch101]

I have talked to Ryan on the phone numerous times, and he really is a good guy. He knows my opinion, and in turn, I know he is much more trusting than me. Ralph and I have communicated on the other Rosy Boa forum, and he seems like an all around good guy also. I think they both are trusting by nature and are just trying to offer us the whole picture. I am sure Rob is a very nice person as well. I have just given up on him and his story, and I remain skeptical. That being said, I was sad to see Ryan's points take a hit into the red for posting his thoughts about Rob. However, it was of no consequence as the situation was easily remedied.

[Sensinitas]

Well put James!!
Ryan