In the original “Jurassic Park”, John Hammond assures the visiting scientists that there is no way the dinosaurs can reproduce because they are all females.
In a famous twist, life found a way and the dinosaurs did manage to give birth to their offsprings.
In a mysterious and surprising time in which life imitates art, a ball python somehow laid 7 eggs although she has not been near a male in years. To be exact, the zookeepers at the Saint Louis Zoo said that this particular female hasn’t been around a male python for 15 years.
The chief zookeeper of the world-renowned zoo said that even their most experienced zookeepers were not expecting this female to lay eggs. First introduced to the zoo in 1961, this particular female is the oldest snake that is still on display at the Saint Louis zoo.
Said to be around 62 years old, the python does not have a name it goes by other than its identification number. Zookeepers said that while some physical signs were observed, they did not think of it as proof of a pregnancy but rather as a deformation of sorts due to the reptile’s age.
Experts said that these ball pythons, which are found in Africa, are known to reproduce asexually. Asexual reproduction has been observed and studied in several reptile species such as the Komodo Dragons and other snakes.
While there are studies that show how these reptiles can store sperm for a prolonged time, the longest recorded term was for 7 years. Zookeepers estimate that it must be at least 15 years ago since this female was physically together with a male specimen, if not close to 30 years.
Moreover, it has been since reported that this female has a history of surprising zookeepers with sudden pregnancies. Back in 2009, this python had laid some eggs although none managed to hatch. Needless to say, there was no contact with a male python back then neither.
The zoo said it has sent two eggs to the lab so that scientists can be determine if they were reproduced sexually or asexually. Two of the remaining eggs have died, while the other three are currently being incubated with the help from the zookeepers.
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Replaced!