A college shocked by the rare birth of an asexual snake

Ronaldo, the Brazilian rainbow boa, gave birth to 14 snakes.

Ronaldo, a 13-year-old Brazilian rainbow boa, gave birth to 14 baby snakes – although they were previously thought to be males.

Staff and students at City of Portsmouth College, where the six-foot snake lives, were particularly shocked since Ronaldo had not been in contact with other snakes for at least nine years.

Birth is thought to be an extremely rare phenomenon called parthenogenesis. Parthenogenesis, a natural form of asexual reproduction, occurs when embryos develop without fertilization.

Although this occurs in other animals and plants, this is only the third documented case in a captive Brazilian rainbow boa.

The birth was discovered by a college student during a routine check of the vivarium. Since Ronaldo had already been declared male by a veterinarian, staff thought the student had made a mistake.

After seeing the 14 little snakes, the college called Pete Quinlan, a reptile specialist who looked after Ronaldo. The snake had been in Mr Quinlan’s care for nine years, after being adopted by the RSPCA.

Mr Quinlan has now started sexing the small snakes and is setting up 14 vivariums for the new arrivals. Once adults, the snakes will be rehoused.

The college hopes this unexpected arrival will provide students with the opportunity to learn more about the development of baby snakes.

Mr Quinlan said: “I have been breeding snakes for 50 years and have never seen this happen before. In fact, babies are clones of their mothers, although their markings are all slightly different.

“Ronaldo looked slightly bigger than usual, like he had eaten a big meal, but we never thought for a moment that he, or should we say she, was pregnant. “