merumontanus
Avid Member
Celine,
Here's a photo of a female jacksonii of the nominate form. As you can see, they tend to be a bit darker in coloration than females of the xantholophus subspecies and many of them (not all) also have a pronounced, highly annulated, rostral horn. I have seen females of the nominate form bearing just a single rostral horn or even all three, so the variation within that subspecies is great. What is more rare is to see a xantholophus with a single, large, rostral horn-- most of the time it is highly reduced.
On the other hand, remember that intergradation occurs in the wild in Mt. Kenya, and if yours came from Hawaii, then the single horn could also be the result of inbreeding on the island. Just have a look at this California-farmed xantholophus (of Hawaiian genetics) with an extra digit:
Kent has kept jacksonii jacksonii here in the U.S. and still has a female left-- perhaps he can chime in if he sees this thread and give you an opinion on your female-in-copulation.
As for the hoehnelii, I have kept both lowland and alpine specimens-- both were kept around 65˚F (18C) ambient temperature (with basking lights), and the night temperature would fall below to 60˚ (15˚) or less during the winter. The lowland animals did much, much better for me and one of the males lasted over a year, but they all ultimately perished. Considering the ridiculous weather of the South U.S. I decided not to try them again, but once I relocate to a cooler climate, I plan on making another attempt.
Good luck with your endeavors and please continue posting photos of your animals!
Cheers,
Fabián
