The desert grassland whiptail is an all female lizard species that reproduces exclusively by parthenogenesis.
Originally a hybrid between two other species the desert grassland whiptail has three sets of chromosomes (triploid) and has only females. The eggs develop without fertilization from a male but the females engage in sexual behavior with each-other and even perform a sort of pseudocopulation which results in greater number of offspring, in spite of the fact that no genetic material is exchanged.
Desert grassland whiptails are native to the southern United States and Mexico.
Further Readings:
Desert grassland whiptail lizard on Wikipedia.
Desert grassland whiptail on the Toronto Zoo website.
Asexual lizards do not need sex to keep genetic variation.
Desert grassland whiptail on the Toronto Zoo website.
Asexual lizards do not need sex to keep genetic variation.
Last updated: October 12, 2015