LONDON (Reuters) - Flora, a pregnant Komodo dragon living in a British zoo, is expecting eight babies in what scientists said on Wednesday could be a Christmas virgin birth.
Flora has never mated, or even mixed, with a male dragon, and fertilized all the eggs herself, a process culminating in parthenogenesis, or virgin birth.
Re: Scientists expecting virgin birth this Christmas
I suppose the zookeepers could be considered as Shepherds. There certainly ain't no lack of animals for the manger scene. If the International Space Station flies overhead, there's your Christmas Star. But where's Joseph?
Re: Scientists expecting virgin birth this Christmas
Some reptiles and amphibians have been known to fertilize their own eggs when a mate is not available. Its an under extreme circumstances thing if I remember rightly. I read that like a million years ago somewhere, I'll have to try to find that info again...
and wait for the minor miracles to start happening!!
