Candling?

Things are getting busy for Lizards of Oz. This is the time of year when his snakes start laying their eggs and the incubation process begins. But, before any eggs are put into the incubator, Matt carefully checks each egg to make sure it is fertile. This process is called candling. First the eggs are removed from the females cage, then each egg is placed in a container with slightly damp pearlite (incubation medium), then a high powered flashlight is held against the egg to check for blood veins which will indicate the egg is fertile. Then the container is placed in the incubator and kept at 88 - 89 degrees for a period of 56 - 60 days.

You will know hatching is drawing near when the eggs start to dimple and sweat. At that point, the tiny snake inside uses it's egg tooth to slit an opening in the egg. After that, the snake will sit inside the egg for 4-5 days until all of the yoke has been absorbed, and then finally, he slithers out.

Below are a few pictures to give you an idea of how this process works.