Female Jackson Laying Yolk-Like Structures

[jpowell86]

I've had Calypso for 3 1/2 years. I have bred her once and she produced 18 offspring. She hasn't been near a male in the last year and 9 months. I know that female Jackson's have been known to have up to three generations of brood developing internally, but I must admit I have never seen this. So far, she has passed/laid 16 of these structures. Has anyone experienced this before? She doesn't seemed stressed in the least.....in fact, while passing number 7 or 8, she turned and nabbed a cricket. It's interesting, because I thing about the need for laying bins with some species, due to females becoming egg bound. It would have been my guess that a Jackson's would basically absorb the infertile yolks v passing them.

 

[jpowell86]

We are up to 21 now.

 

[ferretinmyshoes]

This is seen not uncommonly with live bearing species. The term for them is "slugs" and they're basically just yolks that never developed into embryos. Sometimes they pass a few slugs with a clutch of normal babies and sometimes they just have a clutch of slugs. Occasionally even egg layers can pass slugs, like my quad.

 

[jpowell86]

Interesting. So is this something I can expect to happen every once in a while if I never breed her again? I appreciate the information.

 

[ferretinmyshoes]

Probably so but some females drop slugs more readily than others do.