Jump to content

Elderly ball python lays eggs 'without male help'


crash_davis

Recommended Posts

 

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-54121551

Quote

A snake laying eggs might not seem to be the most unusual thing to happen.

But keepers at the Saint Louis Zoo in Missouri were surprised to discover that one of their ball pythons had produced seven eggs - despite having no contact with a male for over 15 years.

While some reptiles are known to reproduce asexually, keepers are also surprised by the mother's age.

At an estimated 62 years old, the ball python is believed to be the oldest living snake.

Mark Wanner, the zoological manager of herpetology at the zoo described the birth as a "unique occurrence".

"It's amazing, in my opinion, that a snake of this age is able to reproduce a fertile clutch of eggs," he told the BBC.

 

The snake was given to the zoo by a private donor in 1961 and was estimated to be three years old at the time, according to Mr Wanner.

The oldest documented ball python to date was a male at Philadelphia Zoo who died at the age of 47.

Mr Wanner added that the zoo planned to publish information about the snake's age and asexual reproduction, if and when it is confirmed by testing.

Three eggs have survived and remain in an incubator. They are expected to hatch within a month.

An employee at Saint Louis Zoo examines the eggsIMAGE COPYRIGHTSAINT LOUIS ZOO
image captionThe eggs will remain in an incubator

The zoo is using genetic testing to determine whether the eggs were produced asexually, which has previously been recorded in reptiles including ball pythons, rattle snakes and komodo dragons.

There have been previous cases of snakes storing sperm for delayed fertilisation.

 

Ball pythons, or royal pythons as they are also known, are native to central and western Africa.

 

 

  • Fuck You 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Virgin birth aka parthenogenesis 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parthenogenesis

It's been documented for fish, amphibians, reptiles and birds. It's an ancestral trait for vertebrates, so mammals theoretically can do it, but it's never been documented in natural conditions, only induced in the lab.

This happened to a Komodo dragon a few years ago.

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/virgin-birth-by-komodo-dragons

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 minutes ago, Pods said:

Virgin birth aka parthenogenesis 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parthenogenesis

It's been documented for fish, amphibians, reptiles and birds. It's an ancestral trait for vertebrates, so mammals theoretically can do it, but it's never been documented in natural conditions, only induced in the lab.

This happened to a Komodo dragon a few years ago.

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/virgin-birth-by-komodo-dragons

Big black nemesis  . . . 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

14 hours ago, elfenix said:

we thought my roommate's bird was male until one morning there was an egg in the cage.  laid without male help.  /csb

Did it produce a live hatchling? Chickens produce unfertilized eggs all the time. We buy them by the dozen in the grocery store. If they ever sell you a fertilized egg by accident, you’ll know it.

I doubt that’s even possible these days. But I remember it happening once when I was a kid and it was pretty gross. There was blood. 

Edited by WhatTheBuck
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Virgin birth aka parthenogenesis 
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parthenogenesis
It's been documented for fish, amphibians, reptiles and birds. It's an ancestral trait for vertebrates, so mammals theoretically can do it, but it's never been documented in natural conditions, only induced in the lab.
This happened to a Komodo dragon a few years ago.
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/virgin-birth-by-komodo-dragons

Never heard of white man named Jesus?
Link to comment
Share on other sites

4 hours ago, WhatTheBuck said:

Did it produce a live hatchling? Chickens produce unfertilized eggs all the time. We buy them by the dozen in the grocery store. If they ever sell you a fertilized egg by accident, you’ll know it.

I doubt that’s even possible these days. But I remember it happening once when I was a kid and it was pretty gross. There was blood. 

not that i recall. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

11 hours ago, 52-80 said:

did it happen to be a mexican catholic python, by chance?

Interesting. I tell my wife that our son couldn't be mine unless it was immaculate conception. And she states that he probably came from a Mexican Boa.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.



×
×
  • Create New...