Mr Quinlan is busy sexing the 14 baby pythons and preparing new enclosures for them. Once the babies are grown, they will be moved to new homes.
Speaking about the phenomenon of pythons giving birth without mating, Mr. Quinlan said this was “a miraculous birth” and a rare example of parthenogenesis, a natural form of asexual reproduction without fertilization.
Parthenogenesis occurs commonly in some plants, insects, reptiles, and invertebrates. Although rare in vertebrates, it does occasionally occur in some snakes, lizards, sharks, and birds.
Parthenogenesis helps some species to maintain their species in situations where finding a mate is difficult.
The case of Ronaldo’s python is the third time the Brazilian rainbow python has been recorded reproducing in captivity without mating.
The Brazilian rainbow python (Epicrates cenchria) is a non-venomous reptile known for its scales that sparkle in the light. Because of their unique scales, the Brazilian rainbow python is a popular pet.
This is a native python species in Central and South America, distributed in the countries of Brazil, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador… This python species often lives in humid tropical forests, rain forests and riverine areas. . They love climbing on trees and can swim well.
Brazilian rainbow pythons have a gentle personality and are easy to tame. The main food of this python is small animals such as mice, birds and lizards…