Research published on Wednesday in the journal Biology Letters reveals that a female crocodile in a Costa Rican zoo had a “virgin bath” in 2018. The 18-year-old American crocodile which had been in absolute isolation for 16 years laid 14 eggs out of which seven fertile ones were incubated for three months.
One of the seven incubated eggs was discovered to have a fully developed baby crocodile which did not hatch because the fetus was dead. Scientists tested the DNA of the stillborn baby croc and found it contained the genes of its mother only without that of any males – a situation that Biology Letters indicated as facultative parthenogenesis (FP) or the ability for females to give birth without copulating with males.
The journal stated that virgin births are not as rare as people might think. The publication documented that snakes, lizards, sharks, and birds in captivity have been known to reproduce without males, but this is the first time the phenomenon is being recorded in a crocodile.
In 2021, the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance announced that two female condors laid and hatched their eggs without associating with male condors in any manner.
On Thursday, TV co-hosts Ana Navarro and Whoopi Goldberg said on “The View” that men should watch their backs since it may soon become possible for women to procreate without copulating with men anymore.
Although co-host Sara Hines called the idea a “narcissist’s dream,” the women maintained that if it can happen to animals, then there is a wild chance that it can happen to humans.
“Listen, I’m amazed by this story,” Navarro said. “And I just thought to myself, if this is somehow ever able to be done with humans, where women can have babies all by themselves, oh, men, you are in trouble. Because the day we don’t need you to procreate, we ain’t putting up with Jack.”
Goldberg advised men to be mindful of this phenomenon, given the fact that researchers have been working behind the scenes to facilitate asexual reproduction in women. “I’d pay attention if I were you, men,” she said.