It’s been over 16 years since she’s seen a male, yet she just laid an egg, a perfect genetic reproduction of herself.
Nature is still full of mystery. Scientists have already observed cases of “virgin birth” in sharks, birds or recently snakes. For the first time, this process has just been discovered in the American crocodile. With a size between 4 and 6 meters and a weight that can exceed a ton, the animal does not go unnoticed.
Studied by researchers at Virginia Tech University, a female crocodile laid 14 eggs. A fairly common phenomenon in these animals, even if she had been kept away from males for 16 years. As with chickens, there is no need to fertilize the egg for it to be laid.
The virgin crocodile laid 14 eggs
However, in the case of this female crocodile, 7 of the 14 eggs were precisely fertilized. A rare phenomenon known as facultative parthenogenesis. The female was never fertilized, but her organism created a new living being from its own gametes. According to the scientists, this mode of conception is not viable, and of the 7 eggs, none came to term, giving birth to a baby crocodile.
The researchers believe that this “last resort” mode of reproduction should be increasingly common in endangered species. With the proliferation of isolated females, especially in animal parks, the reproductive system of the latter could activate on its own. A last resort survival instinct to perpetuate the lineage.
Could the explanation be found in dinosaurs?
Scientists also believe that the discovery of this phenomenon in crocodiles is not due to chance. All species directly descended from dinosaurs have been shown to be able to lay eggs through parthenogenesis. From there to think that there is a genetic common denominator, there is only one step.
For the specialist in the question Warren Both, of the University of Virgina Tech, all the species having demonstrated a capacity for parthenogenesis have a common ancestor. He would have lived on Earth millions of years ago before dying out, probably around 267 million years before our era.
The discovery of this “virgin” birth in any case calls into question the attributes necessary for reproduction in the animal world. Some scientists hope to be able to transpose these discoveries on humans to allow fertilization on sterile people or in single women who want a child.
