The Mystery of the Immaculately Conceived Baby Anteater

The Mystery of the Immaculately Conceived Baby Anteater

news.yahoo.com

Staffers at a zoological conservation center in Greenwich, Conn., are very confused — as are the rest of us — because their female giant anteater, Armani, has managed to conceive a baby, apparently without the presence of a male anteater.

(visit the link for the full news article)

I couldn't find this story when I did a search...A baby born with only a female to produce it?!?! I am a biology major, and this blows me away. Seriously though, thoughts on wtf happened here? I cannot for the life of me fathom how this could have happened. That without some biologists messing around without telling anyone.

P.S. I shall call the mother Mary, and the baby Jesus.

news.yahoo.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

A special delivery in northern Greenwich

Originally posted by Shark_Feeder
Unfortunately, unless the anteaters themselves 'fess up, there appears to be no way to prove what actually happened.

I think a simple DNA test should do the trick.

reply to post by alfa1


Under normal circumstances I would agree with you. However in this case we are missing even a male to test as the potential father, let alone his DNA to compare. This is like a biological rubics cube to me, an intriguing puzzle.

There are plenty of species that can pull this off - asexual reproduction.

While it can be seen as mind-blowing, could it be possible that at some point in the evolution of this creature, it had asexual reproduction abilities?

We cant pin down the complete evolution of humans, so couldn't the same be true in this case?

Maybe this is one of natures little quirks for species preservation.

That baby anteater is the next jesus christ!

Originally posted by DaRAGE
That baby anteater is the next jesus christ!

I was trying to think of the many scientific possibilities that could explain it, and this was the most logical conclusion.




Well, that or the Zoo holding it is located in Alabama.

reply to post by boncho


I'm sure it's actually more like what some frogs do. For instance, If there are too many male frogs, some will change sex into females or vice versa.

Though this is probably more like what some other species who find that if there aren't any opposite sex around they start "cloning" themselves. I feel it will be a clone of itself with no new genetic material.

For instance, like what this species of lizard does.
Lizard cloning

Or like these sea animals..
www.sciencedaily.com...

Sep. 11, 2003 — After more than a century of intensive study, scientists have assumed that larvae of non-parasitic invertebrates reproduce only very rarely, but new research by University of Alberta scientists overthrows this conventional wisdom. Graduate student Alexandra Eaves and Dr. Richard Palmer, from the U of A's Faculty of Science, have found that asexual cloning by some marine invertebrate larvae is not as rare and enigmatic a phenomenon as previously assumed.

Well, that could explain the chicken or egg first paradox. It has happened in other animal species though that they somehow asexually reproduce. Regardless, that is pretty amazing to pull off.

There are no known higher life forms, especially mammals, that are currently known to be capable of reproducing asexually.

Also gender bending is another sport than creating exact copies of yourself out of your own flesh.

For the record my money is still on a student or biologist artificially inseminating her without telling the bossman.

That or as some have said...it may the coming of the saviour of anteaters.

Originally posted by Xcathdra
There are plenty of species that can pull this off - asexual reproduction.

But there would need to be some evidence of that in historical research, and there is none. Don't you think someone, somewhere, would have noticed by now if Anteaters were capable of this?

Always go for the logical answer first, and the logical answer for me is that someone there arranged for this to happen.

It seems to me whoever did it got plenty of things out of this... they will plausibly have another Anteater (I can imagine someone who loves the animal and wants to see captive breeding would be eager to arrange this), they have a lot of publicity resulting in increased income and job security, interest in a less glamorous animal is increased too.

I think it's much more reasonable to think that someone arranged for this before assuming that it's a biological ability all previous biologists studying the species have just accidentally missed over the last few decades

Originally posted by Rocker2013
I think it's much more reasonable to think that someone arranged for this before assuming that it's a biological ability all previous biologists studying the species have just accidentally missed over the last few decades

I have to agree...although it is in my nature to poke fun at things. Hence. let the holy anteater jokes begin!

Originally posted by Shark_Feeder
Under normal circumstances I would agree with you. However in this case we are missing even a male to test as the potential father...

Did you read the article?

The gestation period for anteaters is six months. Armani and Alf had not been back together long enough to do what they needed to do

Armani and Alf were together.
Then they were separated for a while.
Now they're back together.

They say the timing doesnt work out, but yes, there is an obvious father to test.

Ok God, that's just weird dude

For some reason, the term, "Parthenogenesis" comes to mind.

I may have to look that up again.

Have you guys not seen the documentary called Jurassic Park?
Seriously!

Originally posted by Shark_Feeder

Originally posted by Rocker2013
I think it's much more reasonable to think that someone arranged for this before assuming that it's a biological ability all previous biologists studying the species have just accidentally missed over the last few decades

I have to agree...although it is in my nature to poke fun at things. Hence. let the holy anteater jokes begin!

No way man! It's totally [snipped] aliens I tell you!

Okay quick... somebody put up the big haired ancient aliens guy... "I'm not saying its aliens, but..."

LOL!

Originally posted by Shark_Feeder
There are no known higher life forms, especially mammals, that are currently known to be capable of reproducing asexually.

Aren't sharks a higher life form?

One case that was posted some years ago.
female shark reproduces without sex

Hmmm,my anteater senses are tingling...
I am thinking a zoo worker artificially inseminated this anteater,and then the zoo or the worker have claimed its a miracle to drum up interest and more bussiness in the zoo.

reply to post by beezzer


Exactly my thoughts. To quote Jurassic Park..."Nature finds a way". Parthenogenesis is the second most likely explanation after genetically testing the male Anteater. It may be possible that some females have the ability to incubate sperm when it is in short supply naturally for use when she becomes receptive?