Female Komodo Dragon Gives Birth to Three Hatchlings — and She Did It Without a Male Partner
Talk about a strong, independent woman.
Charlie, a female Komodo dragon that lives at the Chattanooga Zoo in Tennessee, gave birth to three hatchlings back in September — and now it’s been confirmed that she did so without a male partner’s involvement.
In a Facebook post shared on Feb. 28, the zoo said it was initially unsure if Charlie’s hatchlings, named Onyx, Jasper, and Flint, were a product of breeding with a male Komodo dragon, Kadal, or through parthenogenesis, which is a type of reproduction when a female produces offspring without male fertilization.
The zoo has now discovered that parthenogenesis was indeed what occurred.
“Although Kadal and Charlie were placed together in hopes of breeding, our staff is very excited to witness this monumental work of nature and be part of such an important conservation program,” the Chattanooga Zoo’s Facebook statement read.
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According to Scientific American, parthenogenesis is rare among vertebrates. Only 70 backboned species — about 0.1 percent of vertebrates — can do it.
Female Komodo dragons carry WZ sex chromosomes, while males carry ZZ sex chromosomes. Once parthenogenesis occurs, the mother can only create WW or ZZ eggs.
Komodo dragons mainly live isolated in the wild and often become violent when approached, the zoo said. This has allowed the species to evolve to reproduce both sexually and parthenogenetically.
Onyx, Jasper, and Flint were all available for public viewing at the Chattanooga Zooo on Feb. 29 and March 1.
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