When an etelia lands on island of birth and gets a snowflake, is that the keepers' only snowflake of the season? My etelia found her birthplace early in the season on like level 2. I keep thinking I should still find another one after level 10. But...I've been through like 400 portals and nothing.

This is etelia-breeding, right, not the snowflake you get from exploring? (You can only get one of the latter, ever.) 

Etelia birthplaces are random--I had one find hers immediately, and another one needed like 50 islands. 

Island level doesn't matter here--you know as soon as you get to the island if it's the right one or not. (I sometimes go in a couple levels anyway, but that's because I'm hoping for fountains to replentish my etelia's energy so I can try again when I leave.) 

Yeah, it was the breeding. I am getting a little frustrated searching for the snowflake now. I don't think it took so long last year.

My first etelia needed 100 explores to breed. I was really, really frustrated. But now I have more snowflakes than I know what to do with, and no hope of hatching them all this year. Oh well. Maybe next year I'll have enough deviants as well. I didn't do very much planning last year. Whereas the previous year I was incredibly and almost ludicrously prepared. 

I so wanted a shiny blood etelia. I suppose you can't have everything.