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    - Photo via Live Science Journal -
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Published on Wednesday,
June 7,
2023
By the A.M. Costa Rica staff and wire services
One American crocodile (Crocodylus acutus) had been isolated in a reptile park in Costa Rica enclosure for 16 years when she laid a clutch of eggs, according to a report published in the Live Science Journal.
Scientists have announced the first-ever recorded case of a crocodile "virgin birth" after a female that had been isolated for 16 years was discovered with a clutch of eggs.
The discovery provides "tantalizing insights" into the evolutionary origins of the trait, potentially shedding light on the reproductive capabilities of dinosaurs, a new study finds.
The crocodile was taken into captivity in 2002 when she was 2 years old and placed in an enclosure at Parque Reptilandia located in Perez Zeledon Canton, Puntarenas Province.
She remained alone for the next 16 years. But in January 2018, a clutch of 14 eggs was found in the enclosure.
Virgin births, also known as facultative parthenogenesis (FP), is a type of asexual reproduction in species that would normally reproduce sexually. Scientists have documented it in birds, sharks, lizards and snakes in captivity, among other species.
Until
now, it had never been recorded among
Crocodilia, the order that includes
crocodiles, alligators, caimans and
gharials.
In
a study, researchers said
seven of the 14 eggs produced
by the crocodile in Costa Rica
were viable. Zoo caretakers
incubated these eggs, but they
didn't hatch, so after three
months, they opened the eggs. The
contents of six of the eggs
were "not discernable," but
one contained a fully formed,
but non-viable fetus. Genetic
analysis showed it was almost
identical to the mother. The
team, led by Warren Booth, an
entomologist at Virginia Tech,
wrote in the study that it was
"disappointing" the egg failed
to hatch, but that it is not
unusual for offspring born
this way to suffer
abnormalities and fail to
thrive. The
FP may be more common in
species on the brink of
extinction, and studies
investigating wild populations
could reveal more cases. They
also said the discovery of a
virgin birth in a crocodile
means FP has now been found in
both birds, which descended
from dinosaurs, and a
crocodilian, suggesting a
common evolutionary origin.
Birds and crocodilians are the
remaining representatives of
archosaurs, the group that
also included dinosaurs and
pterosaurs. "This
new evidence offers
tantalizing insights into the
possible reproductive
capabilities of extinct
archosaurian relatives of
crocodilians, notably the
Pterosauria and Dinosauria,"
they wrote. What have you heard about female reptiles capable of asexual reproduction? We would like to know your thoughts on this story. Send your comments news@amcostarica.com
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