Captive Breeding

The objective of The Orianne Society’s Captive Breeding Program is to produce Eastern Indigo Snakes for our Reintroduction Program and to maintain a second colony of Eastern Indigo Snakes for education outreach programs. The Orianne Society recognizes and promotes the importance of these programs to teach species conservation, ecology of southeastern habitats, and environmental ethics.

Orianne Center for Indigo Conservation

The Orianne Center for Indigo Conservation (OCIC), located in central Florida, is currently in the design and construction phase. The OCIC will be the primary facility for the breeding and propagation of Eastern Indigo Snakes for The Orianne Society’s reintroduction projects. Here, Eastern Indigos will be managed using industry best practices in animal husbandry, combined with new and innovative techniques for breeding and propagation. The foremost design theme centers on a preventative health care program that integrates optimal animal environments with recent advances in reptile medicine. This will be accomplished by constructing multiple smaller buildings to facilitate colony management via small groups of snakes rather than the traditional single, large, multi-purpose buildings seen in most zoological parks.

The creation of multiple outdoor enclosures for Eastern Indigo Snakes will be the hallmark of the OCIC. This novel approach offers exposure to all the natural elements that often cannot be simulated adequately inside a traditional reptile building. The natural daily and seasonal cycles of temperature and precipitation will be vital in the long term reproductive cycling of the colony. The opportunity to bask in the sun (ideal for daily thermoregulation and calcium metabolism), exposure to natural photoperiods, cool winter temperatures, and the elements (rain, wind), will keep the snakes in their normal physiological rhythms. In addition, a variety of behavioral enrichment essentials will create a stimulating environment to increase exercise and promote both psychological and physical fitness. These techniques will also increase the fitness of snakes scheduled for release by helping them develop hunting skills and enhancing their problem-solving aptitude.  

The Orianne Society also maintains the Eastern Indigo Snake Studbook and produces the Population Management Plan for the Eastern Indigo Snake for the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA).