Rainbow Boa Snake Gives Birth to 14 Babies in 'Rare Virgin Birth'
Scientists are baffled by a Rainbow Boa Snake who gave birth to 14 babies in what they're calling a "rare virgin birth."
The snake's name is Ronaldo since it was thought to have been male. It has been in isolation for nearly a decade.
Yet, despite having no access to another snake to make babies with, Ronaldo, the snake, gave birth to 14 babies!
"One of the students discovered them during a routine vivarium check," Amanda McLeod, an animal care technician at the City of Portsmouth College in the U.K., where the snake is kept, said in a statement on June 24. "At first, we thought she must have been mistaken. We couldn't believe our eyes!"
"Ronaldo had been looking slightly fatter than usual like he'd eaten a big meal, but we never thought for a moment that he, or should we say she, was pregnant," Pete Quinlan, a reptile specialist at the City of Portsmouth College, said in the statement.
According to the college, this "miracle birth" was due to an "extremely rare phenomenon of parthenogenesis (also called a "virgin birth"), a natural form of asexual reproduction in which embryos develop without fertilization."
“I’ve been breeding snakes for 50 years and I’ve never known this happen before,” Quinlan said. “Effectively, the babies are clones of their mother, although their markings are all slightly different.
Interesting Facts About Rainbow Boa Snakes
According to the Smithsonian's National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute, the Rainbow Boa gets its name from its skin, which has a rainbow-colored effect because its iridescent skin refracts light.
These snakes can live up to 20 years while in human care and can grow to be really big.
"Brazilian rainbow boas are medium-sized, round-bodied terrestrial boas that range from 4 to 6 feet (1.2 to 1.8 meters) in length," the zoo shared. The head is not particularly large, but it is distinctly wider than the neck."
When they have babies, gestation lasts around five months, and they can have big litters. "A typical litter contains 12 to 25 babies," the zoo explains. "Baby Brazilian rainbows live in litters of two to 35," and they're typically around 15 to 20 inches long when born.
The Brazilian Rainbow Boa's native habitat is in the "Amazon River basin, coastal Guyana, French Guiana, Suriname and southern Venezuela," Smithsonian's National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute says. "A primarily terrestrial boa, the Brazilian rainbow boa lives in humid woodland forests and can sometimes be found in open savannas."
These snakes used to be exported worldwide for people who like exotic pets, which is how Ronaldo ended up in the UK at the City of Portsmouth College. Two years ago, Ronaldo was brought to the City of Portsmouth College after being rehomed there by an animal welfare organization.
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