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FAQ - is that black spot in my snow's eye normal?

H

Hurley

Registered
Yes. :D

This little cutie was pullying a huggy-bear routine on my thumb. Amazing squeezing pressure for such a tiny little thing.

This is a 2005 snow motley female showing a nice display of that "black spot" in the front part of her eye (the pupillary margin towards the nose). This is a normal occurance in snows and amels.

HuggyBear.jpg


I believe it to be a dense structure right behind the paper-thin iris that shows black just because it is so dense. Perhaps the ciliary body (the body behind the iris that supplies it with blood and suspends the lens in place behind the iris). I've never been able to find out for sure. Seems awfully close to the pupillary margin for that. At any rate, I don't believe it's pigment, I just believe that area is dense enough to absorb light and appear black in the youngsters. Any snake ophthalmologists out there with an answer? :D
 
You know Connie, I was just wondering the same thing. This year was the first year I bred my male snow Cloud. I thought it may have something to do with him since he has a couple blotches of red scales here and there. He was bred to my female snow Aeris, who has never thrown thrown this before. This year I had 3 snows with black in their eyes. I am keeping a female (who happens to have the most black in her eyes) to breed back to her father just to see if his red scales may prove to be a ruby freckled gene. You answered my question before I even got a chance to ask! Thanks! :)
 
Hurley said:
Yes. :D

This little cutie was pullying a huggy-bear routine on my thumb. Amazing squeezing pressure for such a tiny little thing.

This is a 2005 snow motley female showing a nice display of that "black spot" in the front part of her eye (the pupillary margin towards the nose). This is a normal occurance in snows and amels.

HuggyBear.jpg


I believe it to be a dense structure right behind the paper-thin iris that shows black just because it is so dense. Perhaps the ciliary body (the body behind the iris that supplies it with blood and suspends the lens in place behind the iris). I've never been able to find out for sure. Seems awfully close to the pupillary margin for that. At any rate, I don't believe it's pigment, I just believe that area is dense enough to absorb light and appear black in the youngsters. Any snake ophthalmologists out there with an answer? :D
Click to expand...


Nice picture, but I have some questions about the reflect cell layers being dark. I'm going to see what all I can find on reflective cell layers.

Do you know if anyone has bred animals with that together to see the degree of expression? Or has it been determined why it happens? I hadn't noticed that on any of my animals before. It really strikes me as strange, but I like it. I wonder why it happens and more specificly why it only effects certain parts . . . expecially when it over-rides recessive genes. Amel, etc. when all color pigmentation it supposed to be removed. Why? Why? Why? You would think it wouldn't have that effect, so I really find it interesting. Something else to explore. :)

I have a small clutch of 4 from an 1.0 Opal Aztex x Amel Het Lav Mot. All have dark areas on their pupils, in varing amount, but in both eyes of all four and towards the front. I have tons of questions!

~Julie K. Coultes
JUMIS Reptiles
405-401-6055
 
The darkness isn't on the reflect cell layers (retina), that's at the back of the eye and you can only visualize that through the pupil. :) In this snake, the retina is depigmented so the reflection from the pupil is red. (Unlike normal snakes with black pupils due to pigmented retinas.) This dark area I don't believe IS melanin. It resides right on the iris, itself (or directly behind the pink iris), and given the darkness and the fact that it is present in all amels, snows, etc. (as well as other snakes, I suspect, but covered by their color) I imagine it is a normal structure that is dense enough to absorb light. Muscle is certainly dark enough to absorb light (think of the heart you can see in most amels/snows/blizzards) and I do know in mammals that there is a muscular process behind the iris which serves to supply it with vessels and acts to center the lens and trigger constriction. It's usually more laterally displaced, though (away from the pupil, towards the margins of the iris). :shrugs:

Just a theory. :D I have yet to find anyone who has defined what that area is, but you can visually see it's on the iris. Even looking down on the eye from above, you can see the clear anterior chamber and the floating thin iris with the dark area.
 
Nice picture :) I wish i could get shots like that. I'm glad you asked the question. I had just notised it on Candy last night and was wondering if the spot was normal. Guess it is lol. Anyone know what it is?
 
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