my shark layed eggs, what do i do?

[gatorskin69]

I woke up to two egg pods in my tank. I have a leopard shark and a banded cat shark. Not sure who layed them. Cat shark is too young I think. I took them out and put in my other tank. Will they grow and hatch or do they need to be fertilized ? Will the shark keep laying ? Thanks

 

[Met3112]

Im no shark expert but they need to be fertilized. Hopefully you have them in a tank big enough.

 

[Mike_Noren]

Sharks have internal fertilization, so depending on how long you've owned the sharks it's possible the eggs are fertile.

As for who laid them, start by checking if both your sharks are females, if one of them is a male you know the other one laid the eggs.

 

[karsseboom]

Thats so cool, I would hatch them and maybe see if an lfs wants to buy them.

 

[Luis A M]

Arent leopards viviparous?:strange:

 

[Mike_Noren]

Arent leopards viviparous?:strange:

Depends on which leopard it is. There's a bunch of species called "leopard shark" in different parts of the world and I don't know which species are found in the hobby. If it's Triakis semifasciata then it's viviparous, if it's Stegostoma fasciatum then it lays eggs. And so on and so forth.

 

[Luis A M]

Thanks.Leopard shark in the hobby is usually Triakis,from Baja California,a rather large species,demanding lots of swimming space and low temps.

 

[gatorskin69]

leopard shark

leopard shark

I have a Indonesian leopard shark and since my last post there have been two more eggs. I do have a big enough tank and I will prob sell some of them if they are fertile. She might just be a egg layer. Kinda weird that she would just be poppong out these eggs. I've had her for about two years and Ib sure she was under a year when i got her. The other shark is a banded cat shark.

 

[alprazo]

I'm not sure what an Indonesian leopard shark is. Do you mean Zebra. If so, stegastoma does lay eggs. The shark is probably > 5 ft at maturity. It is a large egg case, as bis as your hand with finger extended. The other "zebra" is better know as a hasslet's. These are carpet shark and reach maturity around 20+ inches off the top of my head. They are difficult to care for and lose their stripes early on. they lay eggs too. The leopards are temperate water sharks, give live birth, and would also be a decent size ~ 4-5 feet. These are also illegal under 3 feet.

If you hold a candle to it, you'll be able to tell if it if fertile. The first couple of eggs are usually wind eggs and are not fertile. They can store sperm, so they could be fertile.

 

[Reefing Newbie]

Could the two species breed together? I do think it is cool that they have laid eggs though!!

 

[alprazo]

Maybe? Google "claspers" and see if you have a male. Yes, it is really cool that you have a shark dropping eggs.

 

[alcoolaid]

That is quite cool. Any pictures of the eggs?

 

[BBraker]

There are also multiple reports of female sharks producing viable eggs in captivity without the presence of a male - EVER. So, although they can store sperm, at least some speices can also produce viable, non-fertilized eggs (not sure if that is cloning, parthenogenesis or what). Some whiptail lizards can do this also.
With young sharks, the first eggs are infertile, even if they've been with a male. I think chickens are like that as well.

Here is a link to one of these stories: http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/10/081010-shark-virgin-birth-2.html


Bill

 

[Clownfishfan]

What size tank do you have? Can we have pics of the eggs and shark?

 

[gatorskin69]

Thank you everyone for responding . The tank is 300 gallons. I can send pics of sharks and eggs to your email . Since last post of two new eggs , there has been 4 more. Seems to be coming in sets of two. When held up to light I can see yolk sacks. I cut one of the first ones open and all there was was blue yolk. Not sure if there is supposed to be anything attached to it that would turn into a shark. If anyone would like to call me and help with questions it would be easier then this post. 5038903558 mike. Thanks

 

[alprazo]

Mike,

Answers and info in the posts help everyone reading and searching in the future. That is part of the reason why this forum is so useful.

If the egg is fertile, there will be an embryo attached to the yolk. An infertile or wind egg will not have one. If you back light the egg, you should be able to identify fertile eggs. The first several eggs a shark produces are most often wind eggs.

Sharks are also know to store sperm. This is the likely scenario with your shark. Did you ever determine the species?