Cause of Colour Variation - Please help!

[BSLMichael]

What color variation? Really there is no true locale or range color variations. All wild type corn snakes have brown to red blotches ( and everything in-between) & backgrounds that range from silver/greyish to orange (and everything in-between.) Phenotypes like Okeetee, Miami or Alabama are really just man created. This is called “domestic selection.” We have found certain animals in a particular area and then have selectively bred for that type. While it may be true that many corn snakes from a certain area have a particular look I can promise you not all will look the same. For example, Dade county corn snakes are known for their silver/grey backgrounds or “Miami type” color. But I’ve seen many corn snakes caught in this area with very orange backgrounds...and they had a very “Okeetee” look to them. But when one is found with a very silver/grey background it is kept and bred (domestic selection.)
No matter where you find corn snakes you find some with a Miami look and some with Okeetee look and everything in-between. I have some f1’s from N. Carolina that look like very nice examples of Miami corns with silver backgrounds and light orange blotches or saddles....But in the same area the parents of these came from really dark orange/red corns have also been found. So, when someone tells you they have Okeetee type corns or Miami type corns what they are really saying is that they have a type chosen to be selectively bred.....not a range variant.

There most certainly are Such things as Locale/range variations. Just because you may find a corn snake that looks like an Okeetee in another area does not disprove it.

All corn snakes have the genetic DNA to produce those patterns or colors. What makes them different is the area that combination of genetics THRIVES in. That is why you see more of a certain pattern/color in a certain area than others.

Dosen't mean you won't EVER see them other places. Just less common.

It is the difference of a gray snake vs a red one in an area that has a lot a rock. The red one will stick out more, so will be most likely to get preyed on over the gray one. So there will be more gray snakes than red ones.
That means the gray genetic thrives more in that area making it a locality.
and agian, that does not mean you WONT see red snakes there. Just less common.

 

[tspuckler]

Darwin's first "Law of Natural Selection" is that variations occur within a species.

Corn Snakes have a wide range and large clutches of eggs compared to many other snakes. So the ability to see color variations is more likely than in other snakes. The same thing would be true of an Eastern Garter Snake (except they don't lay eggs).

You won't find Corn Snakes to be some sort of "special case" for variability in colors and patterns in the wild. It's just that they have an avid following, so hobbyists pay attention to them. There's plenty of variability in other species that goes unnoticed (Bluegill Sunfish come to mind).