A stingray that made headlines at a North Carolina aquarium after miraculously becoming pregnant despite not sharing a tank with any males has died.
A stingray named Charlotte died Sunday after contracting a rare reproductive disease, the Hendersonville Aquarium and Shark Lab announced. He said on Facebook.
“Despite continued care from our medical team and experts, unfortunately our ray Charlotte passed away today,” the aquarium wrote, also thanking followers for their “love and support.”
The aquarium did not disclose what reproductive condition Charlotte has been diagnosed with.
The aquarium announced Charlotte’s shocking pregnancy in February, noting that she had not been in the same tank as a male for the past eight years.
The sea creature is thought to have been conceived through parthenogenesis, a type of asexual reproduction in which an egg grows on its own without fertilization, creating a clone of the mother.
The stingray quickly became a hot topic, garnering headlines and even fodder for late-night talk shows like Jimmy Kimmel and Saturday Night Live.
News of Charlotte’s illness broke in May.
At the time, the aquarium said it wanted to learn more about the disease.
“Studies have been conducted on southern rays, but we have not yet found any studies on round rays,” the report states.
Then in early June, the aquarium announced that Charlotte was no longer pregnant.
As a result, the facility was temporarily closed on June 1st.
The aquarium also closed on Monday and Tuesday following Charlotte’s death.
With post wire
