Multiple births by a captive swellshark Cephaloscyllium ventriosum via facultative parthenogenesis

K A Feldheim; A Clews; A Henningsen; L Todorov; C McDermott; M Meyers; J Bradley; A Pulver; E Anderson; A Marshall

doi:10.1111/jfb.13202

Multiple births by a captive swellshark Cephaloscyllium ventriosum via facultative parthenogenesis

J Fish Biol. 2017 Mar;90(3):1047-1053. doi: 10.1111/jfb.13202. Epub 2016 Nov 11.

Authors

K A Feldheim¹, A Clews², A Henningsen², L Todorov¹, C McDermott², M Meyers², J Bradley², A Pulver², E Anderson², A Marshall³

Affiliations

¹ Field Museum of Natural History, Pritzker Laboratory for Molecular Systematics and Evolution, 1400 S. Lake Shore Drive, Chicago, IL, 60605, U.S.A.
² National Aquarium, Animal Science and Welfare, Pier 3, 501 E. Pratt Street, Baltimore, MD, 21202, U.S.A.
³ America's Wildlife Museum & Aquarium, 500 West Sunshine Street, Springfield, MO, 65807, U.S.A.

PMID: 27861877
DOI: 10.1111/jfb.13202

Abstract

Using a novel set of 12 microsatellites, a captive, adult female swellshark Cephaloscyllium ventriosum that produced five pups via parthenogenesis is described; naturally occurring parthenogenesis has been observed in every vertebrate class with the exception of mammals. As demonstrated in this study, a captive environment is ideal for long-term monitoring of animals under controlled conditions, and easily allows the detection of particular facets of their biology.

Keywords: elasmobranch; microsatellite; reproduction; scyliorhinid.

MeSH terms

Animals
Female
Litter Size
Microsatellite Repeats*
Parthenogenesis / physiology*
Sharks / genetics
Sharks / physiology*