Lizards Prove Virgin Birth is Possible

11/12/2010

You might be surprised to learn that virgin births are found in nature, not just religious tradition and mythology.   That said, virgin birth is something not normally seen in vertebrates (animals with backbones).  Some insects and other invertebrates commonly reproduce by the cloning process called parthenogenesis.  Vertebrates, on the other hand, reproduce sexually, with a male contributing genetic material to the female during the mating process, which combines to form offspring.  At least usually.

A newly described lizard species from Vietnam demonstrates that it's possible for vertebrate animals to reproduce asexually, with females giving birth to offspring without mating with a male.

Named Leiolepis ngovantrii, it is a kind of butterfly lizard.  The first odd thing about it is the story of its recent discovery by scientists.  It is fairly common in the Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province in Vietnam and is well-known to the locals, who have made it a regular part of their diet and commonly serve it in rural restaurants.  In fact, a restaurant is where the lizard first piqued the interest of a scientist who saw it on the menu. He took photos of several of the lizards that were in a holding tank at the diner and sent them to his colleagues at La Sierra University in California, who quickly made plans to travel to Vietnam to investigate.  Unfortunately, by the time they were able to reach that particular restaurant to get specimens of the lizard for study, the owner had cooked and served them all.  Luckily, with the help of local kids and other restaurants, they were able to collect several dozen specimens on their own.

Upon investigation, the scientists made a bizarre discovery: all of these lizards are female. Even odder, they suspect that the lizards are actually hybrids of two other species and, rather than being sterile like most hybrids, evolved the ability to develop offspring without requiring fertilzation from males.

VIDEO: Hear the odd tale of discovery of this species.

 

 

Photo from La Sierra University via Daily Mail UK.

Comments

[articles]

How do you guys know that lizard is a virgin? :)

[imei att iphone]

no way ?!?! how this can be possible 1?!?

[Vung Veets]

Wow, Lizzards are just cool like that i guess.

www.online-privacy.edu.tc

[jack]

That is pretty cool. Here in florida we have tiny lizards. I think this year was too cold for them and we didnt see that many around. Would be cool if these ones could reproduce like the vietnam lizards.

[Deaddoc]

This isn't anything new; there have been dozens of invertebrate species giving birth in captivity without being exposed to a male. They were all reptiles I believe.

[David Mizejewski]

@Deaddoc - all reptiles are vertebrates. But you are correct, as I mention in the post, that some insects do reproduce via parthenogenesis. As far as vertebrates go, Komodo dragons, hammerhead sharks and some other fish have all been documented to have given virgin births as well.

[john]

didnt anyone watch jurassic park?

[Jiri Kohout]

Hi David,
I know the case of Komodo varanka named Maria / Sydney Zoo ? /- please tell smthng more about sharks or fish. Thnx.

[Jiri Kohout]

Hi David,
I remember the case of Komodo female varan named Maria / Sydney Zoo ? /.
Please tell smthng more about sharks or fish.

Sama

Varanka, jménem Marie Komodská,
sama se oplodnila, sama i nakladla.

Sama já, samička, zplodila vajíčka,
ke konci roku šestého,
abych i varana si užila,
než dožiji se skonu
toho vašeho Babylonu.

Varanka jménem Maria …
… jediná ? Hagia Sofia ?

Brno, 26.12.2006. a 12.1.2007

Baraka.

JK

[David Mizejewski]

@Jiri Kohout - Here's some more info on virgin births in sharks and other fishes.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/10/081010173054.htm

http://caliber.ucpress.net/doi/abs/10.1525/bio.2009.59.7.3?journalCode=bio

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2914643/

[Cannabis Seeds]

Found it interesting that these lizards are quite well known in the area and discoveries are still being made about them. Thankyou for a good article.

[Wen Shampoo Reviews]

lol didn't know that lizard are actually hybrids, that's crazy

[Stretch Mark Treatment Reviews]

@john, yes Jurassic park was good, but this is just a tad different.

[no deposit casino blog]

Hi. Lizzards are just cool like that i guess. Thanks!

[xtspy]

I think this year was too cold for them and we didnt see that many around...

[EpicMiamiCondos]

This is an amazing story. Thanks for the share.

[jump2top]

I'm really surprise. Thanks for the trivia.