Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Cloning of Dolly the Sheep

Cloning of Dolly the Sheep

The first successfully cloned mammal was Dolly, a sheep, born on 5th July 1996 at Roslin Institute, Scotland. The cloned sheep was named after the American singer Dolly Parton. Dolly lived for seven years and died of respiratory complications, which is speculated to be due to the actual age of her DNA. Because the DNA in cloned cells belongs to an older individual, the cloned individual’s life expectancy may be affected. Indeed, analysis of Dolly’s DNA revealed shorter telomeres than other...

Reproductive Cloning

Reproductive Cloning

Reproductive cloning is the process of producing a genetically identical copy—a clone—of an entire organism. While clones can be produced by splitting an early embryo—similar to what happens naturally with identical twins—cloning of adult animals is usually done by a process called somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT).
Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer
In SCNT, an egg cell is taken from an animal and its nucleus is removed, creating an enucleated egg. Then a somatic cell—any cell that is not a sex...

Reproductive Cloning

Reproductive Cloning

Reproductive cloning is the process of producing a genetically identical copy—a clone—of an entire organism. While clones can be produced by splitting an early embryo—similar to what happens naturally with identical twins—cloning of adult animals is usually done by a process called somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT).
Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer
In SCNT, an egg cell is taken from an animal and its nucleus is removed, creating an enucleated egg. Then a somatic cell—any cell that is not a sex...

Life Histories

Life Histories

Constrained by limited energy and resources, organisms must compromise between offspring quantity and parental investment. This trade-off is represented by two primary reproductive strategies; K-strategists produce few offspring but provide substantial parental support, whereas r-strategists produce much progeny that receives little care. These strategies are related to an organism’s survival likelihood across its lifespan, which is represented by a survivorship curve. Three general types of...

Energy Budgets and Reproductive Strategies

Energy Budgets and Reproductive Strategies

Organisms must balance energy intake with the energy required for growth, maintenance, and reproduction. These trade-offs result in a variety of survivorship and reproductive strategies, including semelparity and iteroparity. Semelparous species reproduce only once in their lifetime, often investing most available resources into that single reproductive event. Iteroparous species, by contrast, reproduce multiple times over their lifetimes, typically allocating fewer resources to any single...

Asexual Reproduction

Asexual Reproduction

Asexual reproduction allows plants to reproduce without growing flowers, attracting pollinators, or dispersing seeds. Offspring are genetically identical to the parent and produced without the fusion of male and female gametes.

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Seeing spots: Using Great Barracuda (Sphyraena barracuda) to assess abundance metrics and replicate independence for baited remote underwater video systems.

Journal of fish biology·2026

Same author

One Assay to Rule Them All: Development of a Global Environmental DNA Tool to Support Range-Wide Surveys of an Imperiled Sawfish and Its Application in the Eastern Tropical Pacific.

Ecology and evolution·2026

Same author

Thermal performance and activation energy explain flexible thermal habitat use in great hammerhead sharks.

The Journal of experimental biology·2026

Same author

Development and Laboratory Validation of a Field-Deployable CRISPR-Cas12a eDNA Assay for Phylogeographic Lineage Detection in Arctic Char (Salvelinus alpinus).

Molecular ecology resources·2026

Same author

Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Performance Metrics and the Disproportionate Impact of Decertifying Organ Procurement Organizations on Minority Populations.

Transplantation·2026

Same author

Habitat Mosaic Limits Gene Flow and Promotes Morphological Adaptation in a Generalist Mammal.

Ecology and evolution·2025

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 16, 2026

Generation of Transgenic Hydra by Embryo Microinjection

Generation of Transgenic Hydra by Embryo Microinjection

Published on: September 11, 2014

Shark virgin birth produces multiple, viable offspring.

Kevin A Feldheim¹, Demian D Chapman, Doug Sweet

¹Pritzker Laboratory for Molecular Systematics and Evolution, The Field Museum, 1400 South Lake Shore Drive, Chicago, IL 60605, USA. kfeldheim@fieldmuseum.org

The Journal of Heredity

|January 29, 2010

Summary

Facultative automictic parthenogenesis, a form of asexual reproduction, has been confirmed in sharks. This study documents multiple viable offspring from a single mother shark, challenging previous limitations.

More Related Videos

Shifting Zebrafish Lethal Skeletal Mutant Penetrance by Progeny Testing

Shifting Zebrafish Lethal Skeletal Mutant Penetrance by Progeny Testing

Published on: September 1, 2017

Gamete Collection and In Vitro Fertilization of Astyanax mexicanus

Gamete Collection and In Vitro Fertilization of Astyanax mexicanus

Published on: May 25, 2019

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jun 16, 2026

Generation of Transgenic Hydra by Embryo Microinjection

Generation of Transgenic Hydra by Embryo Microinjection

Published on: September 11, 2014

Shifting Zebrafish Lethal Skeletal Mutant Penetrance by Progeny Testing

Shifting Zebrafish Lethal Skeletal Mutant Penetrance by Progeny Testing

Published on: September 1, 2017

Gamete Collection and In Vitro Fertilization of Astyanax mexicanus

Gamete Collection and In Vitro Fertilization of Astyanax mexicanus

Published on: May 25, 2019

Area of Science:

Zoology
Reproductive Biology
Genetics

Background:

Facultative automictic parthenogenesis, asexual reproduction, is rare in vertebrates.
It was recently confirmed in chondrichthyan fishes (sharks, batoids, and chimeras).
Previous cases involved single offspring with short lifespans.

Purpose of the Study:

To genetically verify automictic parthenogenesis in a white-spotted bamboo shark (Chiloscyllium plagiosum).
To document the production of multiple, viable, long-lived offspring via parthenogenesis.

Main Methods:

Genetic verification of parentage.
Long-term observation of offspring survival.

Main Results:

Confirmed automictic parthenogenesis in a white-spotted bamboo shark.
At least two parthenogen offspring were produced.
Offspring survived for 5 years or more.

Conclusions:

Female sharks can produce multiple, viable offspring through automictic parthenogenesis.
This challenges previous understandings of reproductive limitations in sharks.
Demonstrates significant reproductive potential in sharks via asexual reproduction.