A FEMALE stingray is pregnant – but the father’s identity remains a mystery.
Charlotte, who lives in a tank at a North Carolina aquarium, is carrying three to four pups in a “once-in-a-lifetime science mystery” because she reportedly hasn’t shared a tank with a male ray in at least eight years, according to the Aquarium & Shark Lab by Team ECCO.
One explanation behind the mystery is that Charlotte, who is believed to be around 12 to 16 years old, may have reproduced on her own, but other experts speculate that she could be carrying shark “hybrid” babies.
However, Kady Lyons, a research scientist at the Georgia Aquarium, told the Associated Press that a shark-ray hybrid isn’t biologically possible.
While Charlotte is due to give birth any day now, she’s grown quite a following as social media users are intrigued by the mystery pregnancy – and fans are now demanding updates on the aquarium’s Instagram page as the account hasn’t posted about the stingray since yesterday.
“We need an update on Charlotte!” one fan demanded on a recent post as dozens of others asked about Charlotte’s wellbeing and due date in the comments section.
Charlotte is expected to give birth in the next two weeks, according to the Associated Press.
Read our stingray pregnancy blog for the latest updates on Charlotte…
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Charlotte the stingray is expecting
The Aquarium & Shark Lab by Team Ecco was recently rocked by the discovery that its stringray Charlotte was pregnant in a tank with no males.
Charlotte, who lives in a tank at the aquarium in Hendersonville, North Carolina, is carrying three to four pups.
