America A female shark in a zoo has killed a male in the past four years Shark Has given birth to a child despite not being related.
This is the second time a shark has given birth in this manner, commonly known as a ‘virgin birth’, while at the zoo.
Brookfield, Illinois The zoo “Sharks reproduce by laying eggs, but the most interesting thing is that this baby shark was born without the need for a male shark to breed,” shared on Facebook.
The process of giving birth to a child without mating between a female and a male, known as parthenogenesis, has puzzled scientists over the past two decades.
In recent years, many animals have been documented to undergo parthenogenesis, both in the wild and in zoos.
These animals include birds, reptiles, other than birds, snakes and lizards. Such virgin birth is a relatively unique process in animals with complex backbones such as sharks.
Epaulet sharks (which have a distinctive mark near their head) are awake at night. These fish are found in warm and relatively shallow waters from the southern coast of New Guinea to the northern coast of Australia.
They can reach a length of about two and a half to three feet when fully grown. They can survive in low oxygen environment.
They are also sometimes known to ‘walk’ short distances on the ground using their wings.
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On August 23, Brookfield Zoo became one of two zoos to successfully breed epaulette shark pups without such sex.
Adult female sharks reach sexual maturity at three years of age and are only seven years old when they start laying eggs.
Zoo officials say she has not been housed with a male shark since arriving at Brookfield Zoo in 2019.
The zoo said the shark started laying two to four eggs per month, one of which was fertile, and after five months of heat, it hatched.
“We are happy to report that our baby shark is eating finely chopped caplin fish, minced squid tentacles and other finely chopped fish,” Brookfield Zoo zookeeper Mike Mizelis said in a statement. Hoi is eating seafood. We are looking forward to seeing the zoo visitors.’
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2024-10-02 21:43:36
