Axanthism Ball Python
García-Elfring et al. (2025): "Wild-type ball pythons have a black background with tan saddles and traces of yellow ... . In non-axanthic individuals, yellow pigment overlaps tan saddles but is absent from dark regions ... , whereas axanthic pythons lack yellow but retain wild-type melanin patterns ... . ... axanthic individuals have black eyes with a silvery sheen ... ."
How it inherits
- One copy
- One copy shows nothing at all. The animal looks ordinary and is called a carrier, or “het”.
- Two copies
- Two copies, one from each parent, are needed before it appears.
Axanthism carrier × Axanthism carrier
Four ways the two can meet.
- het Axanthism50%
- Axanthism25%
- Normal25%
A pale box is an animal that shows the morph. These are the odds for each egg on its own, not a promise about a clutch.
What this rests on
A peer-reviewed paper identifies the variant behind this morph in the gene gch2/LOC103050242.
- GTP cyclohydrolase II (gch2) and axanthism in ball pythons: A new vertebrate model for pterin-based pigmentation. — Anim Genet 2025
What happens if you breed it
Every pairing involving Axanthism, worked out gene by gene — including what the clutch can be and anything documented about the animals it produces.