Perfect reptile: female monitor lizard does not need males to breed

Science knows many examples of successful same-sex reproduction of organisms. And these are not necessarily the simplest creatures. Today, about 70 species of fish, amphibians and reptiles are known, in the populations of which females are able to produce offspring without males. Genetic studies of these females have shown that they can have a double, triple and even quadruple set of chromosomes, and in some fish even larger.

One of the latest discoveries of scientists in this area were female Komodo lizards, which were able to breed in such an unusual way.

Komodo lizard is the largest of the existing lizards. Individual representatives of this species can grow more than 3 meters in length and weigh more than 80 kilograms. They live on Komodo Island and on several islands located nearby.

Interestingly, the possibility of their same-sex reproduction was discovered by chance. Two female Komodo lizard, kept without males in the zoos of Great Britain, laid eggs, from which normal calves safely hatched. Later another pattern became clear: if this offspring is parthenogenetic, that is, produced without the participation of a second parent, then the hatched descendants will be males, if the cubs are born by a female and a male, then they can be of any gender. Scientists hope that the discovery made will simplify the process of breeding Komodo lizards in captivity.

The reasons for this unusual method of reproduction are still debated. Some scientists believe that such a mechanism is of great importance for the survival of the species. After all, even being alone in isolation from other relatives or not meeting the male in time, the female is able to produce viable offspring, moreover, of the opposite sex. This method can give rise to the development of a population of only one female. Opponents of this theory believe that this method greatly reduces the genetic diversity of the population, which ultimately leads to its degeneration. Therefore, such reproduction without the participation of males does not bear any benefit for the survival of the species.

To date, in the wild, there are about 4 thousand individuals of Komodo’s monitor lizards, a quarter of which are mature females. There are more males than females, and in the breeding season they arrange bloody tournament fights for the right to leave offspring. However, they do not even realize that the female can continue the genus without their participation.