A female shark at the Brookfield Zoo in Illinois has given birth to a pup despite the baby having no father, according to a news release from the zoo.
The shark is an epaulette shark and was never housed with a male, but produced a fertile egg nonetheless, the zoo shared. The process is called parthenogenesis.
Science.org shared that several animals can produce babies via parthenogenesis, including whiptail lizards, komodo dragons, bonnethead sharks, and other animals.
However, the zoo shared that parthenogenesis is less common in sharks because of their complex vertebrates.
Despite it being rare, the baby was born in August to the 3-year-old mother, despite the epaulette sharks typically reaching sexual maturity at the age of 7.
The mother arrived at the zoo from the New England Aquarium in 2019 and began laying eggs in 2022, but they were all non-viable until one came out fertile.
After a five-month incubation period, the pup hatched. It is now measuring five to six inches long and is expected to hit three feet when fully grown.
“We are happy to report that our epaulette pup has been eating well on her diet of finely chopped capelin, minced squid tentacles, and other finely chopped seafood. Our colleagues at New England Aquarium have been a great resource as shark pups produced parthenogenetically can be very delicate,” Mike Masellis, a lead animal care specialist at Brookfield Zoo, said in a statement. “We are looking forward to guests being able to see the pup.”