‘Virgin’ crocodile in Costa Rica zoo found to have made herself pregnant

The first ever known case of a crocodile laying eggs without a male mate – a rare reproductive strategy that could be traced back to dinosaurs – has been documented by scientists.

Over the last two decades, zoologists have increasingly documented the very rare vertebrate reproductive strategy of facultative parthenogenesis (FP) in which females lay eggs or give birth to their offspring without mating.

Until now, a wide range of organisms including…