Need a cute animal Star Wars story? Here’s a stingray whose life mirrors Anakin
When it comes to cute animal stories, we have one for you about a stingray and it comes from Sydney, Australia. Yep, where two of the three Prequel films were filmed!
If you’ve ever been to the Sea Life Sydney Aquarium, you’d be familiar with the stingrays. Well, this is where our story comes in and it stars Freckle, a female eagle ray.
Nothing says miracle like a random birth without finding the right male. According to Australia’s Nine News, Freckle the stingray gave birth to a female baby named Ani. However, there’s a catch: there’s no male involved with the process of stingray baby making.
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How does fatherless conception happen in the wild? The process is called Parthenogenesis. The term comes from the Greek words ‘parthenos’, and ‘genesis’. Some sharks and stingrays can do it. What makes the process special is how rare it occurs.
Freckle’s baby’s name is Ani, which comes from Anakin Skywalker. Not only is it super cool, but it’s the same nickname of the future Darth Vader. The former Jedi’s mother, Shmi gave birth without a father being required, hence his conception being a virgin birth like the stingray.
Freckle’s journey to motherhood started when her keepers saw she lost some interest in her daily training. She also consumed food in high quantities. This is when her human team realized she might’ve been expecting, hence her protectiveness of her growing belly.
The mistake Freckle’s human attendants made was dismissing that she was pregnant because of the lack of the male stingrays living in the tank. However, they soon learned their single eagle ray lady was definitely having a mini ray.
Little Ani arrived in late July 2018 and was monitored because the trainers feared the little ray wouldn’t survive because there was no male involved with her conception.
The Aquatic team are proud to have to a little surprise in their mist. Little Ani is a cute little beastie and we cannot wait to see how she develops. She’s a growing baby who is the ultimate miracle that doesn’t come around often.
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What do you think of this little miracle entering the world? Let us know below!