Still Pregnant: Charlotte The Stingray Keeps The World Waiting!

Charlotte the stingray is STILL PREGNANT! And if you're getting more and more impatient about it, you're far from alone!

Believe it or not, the now famous stingray is still with child and her fans are more than just anxious about the new baby stingray's arrival, or lack thereof. Many of her social media followers have voiced their thoughts and concerns about this longer-than-normal pregnancy.

Charlotte's fans are getting concerned. They're ready to see the new little stingray pup.

In the wild, typically stingrays can have anywhere from 2-6 pups! However, Charlotte's yield is still technically unclear until nature takes its course!

As the aquarium staff continues providing updates on Charlotte's status through Team ECCO's TikTok and Instagram platforms, numerous admirers of the stingray are expressing concerns regarding the duration of her pregnancy.

Team Ecco recently shared another update on TikTok and Instagram to reassure fans that everything is going smoothly.

"Charlotte update for 4-24-24. Charlotte is still doing well. There have been no changes in her behavior, eating, or resting patterns. Her favorite thing to eat today was scallops! Thank you all for your kindness and support!!" the social media caption reads.

Charlotte has many loyal fans eagerly awaiting the stingray pup to make its way into the world. Because this pregnancy seems to be going on longer than normal, many are concerned.

"Are you guys at the aquarium getting concerned yet? What happens if nothing happens?" one person asked on TikTok. Another person said, "My daughter got pregnant right before Charlotte and she had her baby yesterday."

One other viewer joked, "Charlotte the gaslighting stingray. I’m here for it. Maybe she’s just fat."

Over on Instagram, the same vibe lives in the comments.

"Charlotte’s oven is set on low and slow!! This isn’t a normal pregnancy so chill people and let her cook!" one person wrote. Another said, "I'm starting to think Charlotte is not pregnant."

An update about two weeks ago shared more information about Charlotte and a new development.

"Charlotte has lived with us for eight years. During this period, she has dropped her barb several times. Each time, she has regrown a new one," they shared. "The latest barb drop was February 28, 2024. Charlotte is currently in the process of regrowing a new barb, which we see as a sign of health and thriving in her environment."

They continued to explain that Charlotte's eating and resting patterns, as well as her behavior, hasn't changed since their last update.

One viewer hilariously pointed out, "I literally made a joke a month ago saying I would have my baby before her, but I go in tomorrow to have my baby, so I was right."

Another person said, "This is worse than that time we were all waiting for the giraffe to give birth."

The aquarium isn't sure about Charlotte's gestation period because of the rare circumstances surrounding her pregnancy.

"Charlotte's pregnancy is the first documented case of parthenogenesis in a California round stingray. While in a mated pregnancy, the average gestation is three to four months, there is no known data regarding parthenogenetic pregnancy or gestation period," a previous update video explained.

"We performed an ultrasound last week and have sent these most recent images to colleagues in other professional marine science programs. We eagerly await their report after this holiday weekend."

The aquarium announced the shocking pregnancy in early February. They explained why this pregnancy is so shocking and rare.

"Charlotte is a California round stingray who is currently expecting! Thing is, we have no male ray in the tank!" the caption of a video shared on TikTok reads.

"One possibility is that the babies have gone through the process called parthenogenesis where the cell inside of the egg splits on its own and creates an exact clone of the mother. Another possibility is that she was impregnated by one of our two male white-spotted bamboo sharks that we introduced to the tank in July 2023. We won't know for sure until DNA testing is done on Charlotte's pups."

Not long after announcing the pregnancy, the aquarium's founder and executive director, Brenda Ramer, talked about parthenogenesis.

"It's a once in a bluest of blue moons experience," she said, according to ABC News 13. "We're either going to have partho babies, or we're going to have some kind of potential mixed breed, and we're waiting for Jeff Goldblum to show up because we are 'Jurassic Park' right now."

It was determined shortly after that she literally got herself pregnant. And here we are months later waiting to meet her father-less offspring.