History, Politics And Current Affairs

A lone stingray mysteriously became pregnant in an aquarium. Scientists now think a male shark could be responsible.
Alia Shoaib
Feb 11, 2024, 11:04 AM CST
stingray
Richard Whitcombe/Shutterstock

A stingray in a North Carolina aquarium became pregnant without a male in the tank.
Scientists believe that a male shark could be the father.
Another explanation could be parthenogenesis, in which a female produces asexually.



Staff at an aquarium in North Carolina were left confused after a stingray became pregnant despite there not being a male in her tank.

Scientists have a few theories about how this might have happened — and one involves a male shark.

The Aquarium and Shark Lab by Team Ecco in Hendersonville was initially concerned that the stingray had cancer when she began to swell. However, an ultrasound later revealed that the growths were eggs, the lab’s executive director wrote in a blog post.

The director, April Smith, said that one possible explanation was parthenogenesis, a process in which a female can produce an embryo asexually without an egg being fertilized with sperm.
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She said that this was a survival mechanism that allows for the preservation of a species and typically happens in situations where no males are present, such as in a zoo or aquarium or even in a secluded area of the deep sea.

However, scientists developed another theory when they noticed bite marks on the stingray. The stingray had been sharing her tank with two white-spot bamboo male sharks.

“Then our light bulb went off — sharks bite to mate — did one of our young males mate with her?” Smith wrote.

She said that the most recent ultrasound revealed that the stingray was pregnant with two, possibly three pups.
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She explained that their theory would need to be confirmed after the birth unless they first found any visual clues about a mixed breed.

Sharks and stingrays are closely related taxonomically, so interbreeding is theoretically possible.

The animal is due to give birth any day now, and Smith said that updates would be posted on their website and Facebook page.

Latest update on the pregnant NC stingray who shared an aquarium tank with sharks
Evan Moore
Fri, February 16, 2024 at 9:12 AM CST·2 min read
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A pregnant stingray at a North Carolina aquarium has become an overnight celebrity — and many are wondering who the father is.

Charlotte, a round stingray at Aquarium & Shark Lab by team ECCO in Hendersonville, is pregnant with as many as four pups, but she hasn’t shared her tank with any male stingrays in at least eight years, CBS News reported.

She could deliver soon, but as of Thursday afternoon, Charlotte still hadn’t had her pups. But she did get some much-needed rest alongside a horseshoe crab in her tank after meeting a lot of her fans, according to the aquarium’s latest TikTok.

But how did she get pregnant?

Some are saying Charlotte could have been impregnated by one of the five male sharks in her tank.

Charlotte was found engulfed with shark bites, which could signal that she mated with a shark, CBS News reported.

“There might be, like, a shark-stingray baby coming up soon,” said TikTok user @kjadeg, who also suggested that Charlotte could have fertilized her own eggs. “Either way, you get stingray Jesus…or you get shark-ray.”

Would this kind of interspecies pregnancy be possible? Here’s what experts say.
Charlotte’s pregnancy could be the first known case of parthenogenesis in her species. Tim Isbell/ttisbell@sunherald.com
Charlotte’s pregnancy could be the first known case of parthenogenesis in her species. Tim Isbell/ttisbell@sunherald.com
Can a shark impregnate a stingray?

If you were hoping for a shark-stingray hybrid in the near future, you’re out of luck, since it’s impossible for a shark to impregnate a stingray due to their different sizes and DNA, Kady Lyons, a research scientist at the Georgia Aquarium, told the Associated Press.

“We should set the record straight that there aren’t some shark-ray shenanigans happening here,” Lyons said.
So, how did Charlotte get pregnant?

Charlotte’s pregnancy is likely the result of parthenogenesis, a rare method of asexual reproduction where a female can produce an embryo without fertilizing an egg with sperm, AP reported.

Cases of parthenogenesis have been recorded in more than 80 other species, including a zebra shark and a python, according to National Geographic.

“For millions of years animals have reproduced via parthenogenesis, which first emerged in some of the smallest, simplest organisms,” National Geographic says. “Most animals that procreate through parthenogenesis are small invertebrates such as bees, wasps, ants, and aphids, which can alternate between sexual and asexual reproduction.”

But this could be the first documented case of it happening with a round stingray, according to Lyons.

“I’m glad the round stingray is getting the media attention that it deserves,” Lyons told AP. “It’s not necessarily as sexy as a white shark, but they do a lot of really neat stuff.”

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Poohbah wrote: ↑Fri Feb 16, 2024 9:00 pm One stingray and five sharks?

A new Internet meme is born...

Poohbah wrote: ↑Fri Feb 16, 2024 9:00 pm One stingray and five sharks?

A new Internet meme is born...

Belushi TD wrote: ↑Sat Feb 17, 2024 2:25 pm

Poohbah wrote: ↑Fri Feb 16, 2024 9:00 pm One stingray and five sharks?

A new Internet meme is born...

I so wish I had any photoshop skills. The meme is both obvious and begging to be made.

Belushi TD

Belushi TD wrote: ↑Sat Feb 17, 2024 9:22 pm Oh, nooooooo, not THAT meme.

Belushi TD

Belushi TD wrote: ↑Sat Feb 17, 2024 9:22 pmOh, nooooooo, not THAT meme.

Belushi TD