An anaconda snake at the Boston New England Aquarium produced 18 babies without the help of a male. It happened through a process called parthenogenesis. The sets of genes came from her eggs. The egg first clones itself before self-fertilizing. All of her offspring were clones, which doesn’t always happen…

At Boston’s New England Aquarium in early 2019, a 10-foot anaconda named Anna surprised her caretakers when she gave birth to 18 baby snakes—without the involvement of a male. The mama created her offspring by a rarely documented process called parthenogenesis, which is Greek for “virgin birth.” Each of Anna’s…