62-Year-Old Python in US Zoo Lays a Clutch of 7 Eggs Without a Male Companion, Genetic Sampling To Reveal If It Belongs to Species That Reproduce Asexually (See Pictures)
A 62-year-old ball python laid seven eggs without being near any male python. Zookeepers at US Zoo are trying to find out how the reptile reproduced. The incident is also unusual because ball pythons usually stop laying eggs before they reach the 60s. While it is unusual for ball pythons to reproduce asexually, it's not a rare occurrence.
A 62-year-old ball python laid seven eggs without being near any male python for at least two decades now. Zookeepers at St Louis Zoo in Missouri are trying to find out how the reptile reproduced. The laying of eggs by the python is also unusual because ball pythons usually stop laying eggs before they reach the 60s. Mark Wanner, manager of herpetology at the zoo, said that while it is unusual for ball pythons to reproduce asexually, it's not a rare occurrence. Biggest Python Ever! Snake Hunters Catch 17-Foot Pregnant Female Carrying 73 Eggs From Florida Everglades, View Pic.
Wanner was quoted as saying, She’d definitely be the oldest snake we know of in history." The unnamed python laid the eggs on July 23 of which three remain in an incubator while, two were used for genetic sampling. And snakes in the other two eggs did not survive according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported. The eggs that survived are expected to hatch in about a month. Genetic sampling will be done to show whether the eggs were reproduced sexually or asexually, called facultative parthenogenesis. The only other ball python in the zoo’s herpetarium is a male aged 31. Biggest Python Ever! Snake Hunters Catch 17-Foot Pregnant Female Carrying 73 Eggs From Florida Everglades, View Pic.
62-Year-Old Python Lays Eggs in US Zoo:
Komodo dragons and several species of rattlesnakes are known to reproduce asexually. The snakes are not on public view. A private owner gave the female python to the zoo in 1961. The reptile had laid a clutch of eggs in 2009, however, it didn't survive. In 1990, another clutch was born which might have been conceived when the zookeepers put the snake together in buckets with other snakes including males while cleaning their cages. Snakes are also known to store sperm for delayed fertilization.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 11, 2020 03:07 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).