Did you know that a female stingray is able to get pregnant without the help of a male? Talk about strong female energy. Well, that was the case of the late stingray Charlotte who sadly passed away on Sunday, June 30.
The mammal resided in North Carolina and lived in a small aquarium that did not have any stingrays of the opposite sex for the past eight years. Though her pregnancy was unexpected, it was discovered that Charlotte had gone through parthenogensis – which is asexual reproduction that usually happens with invertebres.
There was a point in time where a theory came to be of Charlotte’s tank pals which consisted of two male bamboo sharks. Researchers noticed bite marks on the stingray and tied that into a shark’s behavior. Usually after mating, a shark tends to bite but the two are considered “so genetically distant that that is not considered possible,” Warren Booth an associate professor of entomology at Virginia Tech said to NPR.
Though she was expected to deliver her little ones between the normal maternity span of three to four months, she surpassed the limit leading to concern. Later on in May, it was announced that Charlotte was no longer expecting.
As many health concerns kept arrising the Aquarium & Shark Lab by Team ECCO revealed via Facebook post on May 30 “the reports show that Charlotte has developed a rare reproductive disease that has negatively impacted her reproductive system. The findings are truly a sad and unexpected medical development.”
Just a month later the aquarium wrote on Facebook , “We are sad to announce, after continuing treatment with her medical care team and specialist, our ray Charlotte passed away today. We are continuing to work with her medical care team and research specialist. The Team ECCO family appreciates your continued love and support while we navigate this great loss.”
They added the facility would “ remain temporarily closed during which time our staff will continue to care daily for our other fish and animals.”
This superstar stingray was loved by many and even gained recognition on Saturday Night Live during a segment of “Weekend Update.”
“Michael, Michael, Michael, boy do I have some news for you — you going to be a daddy!… I’m a little on edge right now. All this attention is alot for me,” Ego Nwodim joked while dressed in a stingray costume channeling her inner Charlotte.
In addition, Jimmy Kimmel chimed in and made jokes about the subject during his show Jimmy Kimmel Live on February 13.