The female epaulette shark has been a resident of the Brookfield Zoo, situated outside Chicago, since 2019. Importantly, she has not been housed with a male since her arrival, as confirmed in a statement by the zoo.
According to a press release from the zoo, a female epaulette shark has been residing at Brookfield Zoo, located just outside Chicago, since 2019. She recently gave birth in an environment where she has not lived with a male since her arrival."
According to a statement with the reporter, Mike Masellis, a lead animal care specialist at Brookfield Zoo, said: “We are happy to report that our epaulette pup has been eating well on her diet of finely chopped capelin, minced squid tentacles, and other finely chopped seafood,”
“Our colleagues at New England Aquarium have been a great resource as shark pups produced parthenogenetically can be very delicate.”
On August 23, a pup hatched from one of the mother's eggs, marking only the second documented instance of an epaulette shark pup being produced through asexual reproduction within a facility accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.
The mother shark was given to the zoo at the age of three. However, according to the zoo's report, this species reaches sexual maturity at around seven years of age.
In 2022, she began laying four typically infertile eggs each month. Surprisingly, one of those eggs turned out to be fertile.
Now, the baby shark is two months old and measures approximately five to six inches in length
According to the National Institutes of Health, Parthenogenesis (PG) is a type of asexual reproduction in which a female can develop an embryo without the need for fertilization by sperm.
PG appears in certain invertebrates like ants and bees, however, this is relatively rare in vertebrates, including sharks.
Watching the video below:
