As a coastal city, Hong Kong has always had a unique bond with the ocean. 🏙️🌊⚓
To safeguard the oceans and combat the decline of marine biodiversity, breeding programmes for marine life have become essential under human care.
Recently, Ocean Park Hong Kong achieved a major breakthrough by recording the first live birth of a cownose ray pup via artificial insemination!
Over several weeks, Ocean Park’s dedicated teams trained the rays for voluntary examinations, allowing the artificial insemination procedure to be performed without sedation.
This remarkable success paves the way for the ex-situ conservation of this endangered species while providing insights into their behaviours and reproductive patterns!
Here are a few key learnings:
⭐The gestation period of cownose rays is over a year (61 weeks and 2 days, to be precise)!
⭐Successful artificial Insemination involves keeping the rays healthy and conducting regular pregnancy follow-ups.
⭐Ocean Park can now apply Artificial Reproductive Techniques to other species, too!
Have you visited the baby ray yet?
