She is active, feeding well, and displaying normal behavior for her species.
A crested gecko (Correlophus ciliatus) has hatched at New Jersey’s Liberty Science Center from a mother who has been at the center since 2016 and has never been exposed to a male crested gecko.
While parthenogenesis has been known to occur in reptiles, including rainbow boas, American crocodiles, Komodo dragons, and anacondas and reticulated pythons, among others, the phenomenon is not as well known to occur among crested geckos.
“We’re pleased to report that, while parthenogenetic offspring can sometimes face health challenges or developmental issues due to limited genetic diversity, our new hatchling is off to a strong start. She is active, feeding well, and displaying normal behavior for her species, with no visible abnormalities at this time,” Kyle Baumgartner, a member of LSC’s animal husbandry team said in a statement on the center’s website. “It’s always exciting to have a baby, but it’s even more exciting when it’s through such a rare phenomenon,” he said.
Crested geckos are one of the most popular reptiles kept as pets by reptile keepers and were once thought to have gone extinct until they were rediscovered in the early 1990s.
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