Line #14 Main/PregnantReptile


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4	[[quoteright:350:[[Literature/{{Froggy}} https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/froggys_mother_is_pregnant.png]]]]
5	[[caption-width-right:350:[[Film/JurassicPark1993 Life will find a way.]]]]
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10	MostWritersAreHuman, and humans are mammals that give live birth. Despite the ''vast'' majority of the animal kingdom having other ways to reproduce, some writers, especially when writing an anthropomorphic animal work, may find laying and rearing eggs odd and have an animal that does ''not'' give live birth reproduce the mammal way.
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12	This trope also applies to monotremes (that special order of mammals that lay eggs), mythological creatures that are not usually depicted as giving live birth, and even [[AnimateInanimateObject Animate Inanimate Objects]] if they are shown getting pregnant or giving birth.
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14	The animal does not necessarily have to be shown giving birth, as a pregnant belly is enough to show that it is a live birth.[[note]]At least in fiction.[[/note]] Similarly, despite the title, if the non-mammal is shown birthing live young, they don’t have to be shown getting pregnant.
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16	It should be noted that, despite what is often taught in schools about reptiles as egg-layers, quite a few species of snakes and lizards (as well as some fish such as sharks) are in fact [[RealityIsUnrealistic capable of carrying and bearing true live young]]; this is not a feature limited to mammals. In fact, an entire group of snakes-- vipers-- actually got their name because of this trait, as "viper" is short for "ovoviviparous," which basically means that the mother's eggs hatch inside her body and the young are born live. Also, any egg-laying species that undergoes internal fertilization will carry the offspring within its body for a period, until it comes time to lay eggs.
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19	SubTrope of ArtisticLicenseBiology and PregnancyDoesNotWorkThatWay. Contrast with WhaleEgg, in which a mammal reproduces in an unnatural way. Can go hand-in-hand with NonMammalMammaries. InterspeciesRomance examples count too if the character giving birth to the non-mammal is oviparous but the partner not giving birth is viviparous (never vice-versa though). See also MisterSeahorse for another trope about characters getting pregnant/giving birth when they biologically shouldn't be able to.
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22	!!Examples:
23	[[foldercontrol]]
24
25	[[folder:Advertising]]
26	* [[https://youtu.be/eJIWPY-Fi8I This ad]] for Baby Tuc crackers has a regular-sized Tuc give birth to a Baby Tuc, complete with a baby bump that disappears upon the birth and what sounds like laboured breathing.
27	** Later mixed with InterspeciesRomance for Tuc Craks - [[https://youtu.be/cWf0rToW42c the lovechild of a crisp and a cracker.]]
28	[[/folder]]
29
30	[[folder:Comic Books]]
31	* Lara-Le from ''ComicBook/SonicTheHedgehogArchieComics'' is an echidna, in RealLife an egg-laying mammal, who was pregnant both with Knuckles, and his half-brother. One issue states that an echidna egg typically hatches three days after it has been laid.
32	* ''ComicBook/TheUnfunnies'' depicts Sally Gator with a baby bump when she and her husband conceive a new child.
33	* Issue #115 of ''ComicBook/{{Invincible}}'' shows a prominent shot of Emperor Thragg's personal maternity ward on Thraxa, where ''hundreds'' of [[InsectoidAliens blue mantis-like Thraxan women]] are shown either cradling pregnant bellies or giving birth to his [[NonHumanHumanoidHybrid half-Viltrumite]] spawn. Who are born looking almost exactly like human babies, save for the bluish-purple tint to their skin.
34	[[/folder]]
35
36	[[folder:Fanfiction]]
37	* In ''Fanfic/TheNewestAdditionIrrilia'', it is implied that Irrilia's birth was a live one, Mona Lisa having delivered her at a hospital in her home planet. What makes this trope apply is that Mona Lisa is a Salamandrian (a humanoid salamander alien) while the father Raphael is a mutant-turtle.
38	[[/folder]]
39
40	[[folder:Film]]
41	* Hutts from ''Franchise/StarWars'' are implied to be reptiles or amphibians, [[MisterSeahorse and are male, yet they are able to get pregnant and give birth]]. ''Franchise/StarWarsLegends'' establishes that Hutts are hermaphrodites that prefer male pronouns.
42	* ''Film/AlienResurrection'': It's unclear exactly what taxonomy the [[StarfishAliens Xenomorphs]] would belong to, but they're clearly not mammals since they do not have mammary glands.[[note]]Under normal taxonomic rules, the correct answer would be "none" since they're not related to/descended from any Earth organisms.[[/note]] However, because of retaining some of Ripley's DNA after gestating inside her, the new Queen ends up birthing a live newborn.
43	[[/folder]]
44
45	[[folder:Literature]]
46	* ''Literature/{{Froggy}}'s Baby Sister'' shows Froggy's mother pregnant with his baby sister. His baby sister is then shown [[FurryReminder drinking fly mush]].
47	* In ''Literature/{{Franklin}}'', the main character, a turtle, is eventually given a little sister. But the book has the mother going through a normal pregnancy instead of her laying an egg. The same is true in the adaptation film, ''Franklin and the Green Knight''.
48	* At one point in ''Literature/TheMalloreon'', Sadi's pet snake gives birth. This puzzles some of the others until Sadi explains that while most snakes lay eggs, his pet's species is a live-birth one.
49	* Anadi Jokka from ''Literature/TalesOfTheJokka'' give live birth. Although it's not entirely clear whether they are mammals even though they lactate, [[NonMammalMammaries have breasts]], and [[NonMammalianHair have hair]], considering that they're aliens and have been known to change sexes during puberty.
50	[[/folder]]
51
52	[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
53	* In the ''Franchise/StarTrek'' universe, Cardassians resemble reptiles more than mammals. They like lying on hot rocks in heat too intense for most other races, and they have patches of scales on their skin and have flared necks akin to snakes. While we've never seen a pregnant Cardassian, they are known to have reproduced with Bajorans, and one woman thought breeding with a human was possible.
54	[[/folder]]
55
56	[[folder:Puppet Shows]]
57	* Slimey's mother, a worm, was shown pregnant in Episode 3307 of ''Series/SesameStreet'', even though real-life worms hatch from eggs.
58	[[/folder]]
59
60	[[folder:Toys]]
61	* There are some rubber duck bath toys that are depicted as being pregnant, and you can find them [[https://amsterdamduckstore.com/rubber-duck/pregnant-rubber-duck/ here]].
62	[[/folder]]
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64	[[folder:Video Games]]
65	* ''VideoGame/{{Minecraft}}'':
66	** While chickens ''do'' lay eggs that occasionally spawn chicks when thrown, they can also breed in the standard way like mammals in the game do, which resembles [[GRatedSex kissing followed by an instant live birth]].
67	** In a similar vein, bees go through the same breeding process as any other breedable mob in the game.
68	* Players can invoke this in ''VideoGame/TheSapling'', as whether or not an animal gives birth to live young or lays eggs is completely independent of what type of animal they are.
69	* In ''VideoGame/TyTheTasmanianTiger 2: Bush Rescue,'' one mission has Ty dealing with an accidental roadblock to help [[MaternityCrisis a woman in labor get to the hospital.]] The woman in question is a koala, and while koalas are mammals, they're marsupials and thus have short pregnancies, with young born very early in development and largely nourished inside their pouches. This pregnancy, however, is shown as human-like, with the koala woman having a large abdomen and labored breathing.
70	[[/folder]]
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72	[[folder:Webcomics]]
73	* The Wyverns ([[OurDragonsAreDifferent a type of bipedal dragon]]) from ''Webcomic/DarkWings'' are shown to give live birth - in fact, Sleet was cut out from his dead mother's body, even though most other dragons typically lay eggs in other media.
74	* In ''Webcomic/EnnuiGo'', Ally is shown to be pregnant in the final right panel of "[[http://ennuigo.thecomicseries.com/comics/1359 Those Guys]]." As a reminder, Ally is [[HalfHumanHybrid half-alligator]].
75	[[/folder]]
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77	[[folder:Web Original]]
78	* ''Blog/HamstersParadise'': The rattiles are scaly cold-blooded lizard analogues but they still give birth to live young due to their mammalian heritage. However, they have lost their mammary glands and give birth to highly precocial young because the mothers either won't care for their offspring at all or will only put in a token effort to feed and protect them before leaving [[OffingTheOffspring so she doesn't eat them]] when her maternal hormones run out.
79	* ''Website/{{Serina}}'': A number of bird groups develop full viviparity over time:
80	** The vivas are flightless birds that carry their huge eggs until or even just after they hatch. The original species essentially broods fully formed eggs within their bodies, but later ones create increasingly neotenic and shell-less eggs.
81	** Placental birds descend from the changeling birds, which metamorphose from "larvae" similar to insects and hatch from tiny eggs lacking much yolk. Some lineages evolve the ability to retain these larvae inside their oviduct and nourish them with their bloodstream until the young are born live and well-developed.
82	[[/folder]]
83
84	[[folder:Western Animation]]
85	* Discussed in ''WesternAnimation/DinosaurTrain''[='=]s "Zepplin" arc. When the young ''Polycotylus'' says she's one day old, the kids point out that she's half the size of her mother, and Don wonders if her egg was huge. The ''Polycotylus'' says no, her species gives live birth.
86	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'': Done with Kif, who is an alien that is basically humanoid, but has BizarreAlienBiology that points to him being some sort of amphibian. When he gets [[MisterSeahorse pregnant]], however, he winds up giving birth to a collection of tadpoles. It's an [[InterspeciesRomance interspecies]] example, too, as the biological mother is [[spoiler:Leela]].
87	* ''WesternAnimation/TheLoudHouse'': In "Friends in Dry Places", a snake is said to have given birth in Lincoln's sleeping bag. Justified, since some kinds of real-life snakes really appear to give live birth.
88	* ''WesternAnimation/RobotChicken'': "Potato Whore" has [[Franchise/ToyStory Mrs. Potato Head]] [[ChocolateBaby giving birth to a carrot]], to which Mr. Potato Head replies, "You Whore".
89	* One ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'' episode had an ostrich giving birth to a [[HalfHumanHybrid half-human half-ostrich]] child after a [[AnimalWrongsGroup PETA]] member has sex with her.
90	* ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants'':
91	** In the episode "Truth or Square", it is revealed that [=SpongeBob's=] first time tasting the Krusty Krab was when his mother was pregnant with him. He is shown in her womb, being fed Krabby Patties through an umbilical cord (which he pulls off his abdomen and sucks!). While sponges don't actually give live birth, they ''are'' biological hermaphrodites and are capable of sexual reproduction in addition to the better-known method of asexual budding that the show itself popularized much earlier in its run.
92	** In the episode "Pets or Pests", [=SpongeBob=] adopts a worm that he thinks is a male, [[YourTomcatIsPregnant which then gets pregnant and gives live birth]]. [=SpongeBob=] then spends the rest of the episode trying to find someone to adopt the baby worms.
93	** Although he wasn't actually pregnant, Mr. Krabs ''disguised'' as a pregnant woman in the episode "The Cent of Money".
94	** Then there is the episode "Spot Returns" where Plankton's amoeba puppy gets pregnant and gives birth. This also turns out to be a case of YourTomcatIsPregnant like the worm example above.
95	* Inverted in ''WesternAnimation/RockosModernLife''; Filburt is a turtle who is married to a cat, Dr. Paula Hutchinson. When the two of them have a baby, Dr. Hutchinson ends up [[WhaleEgg laying an egg]], which hatches into two baby turtles, a kitten... and [[ChocolateBaby a steer that looks like Heffer for some reason]].
96	[[/folder]]
97
98	[[folder:Real Life]]
99	* The formal scientific term for live birth is "viviparity". This is the primary form of reproduction among mammals, but there are also some snake, lizard, shark, and worm species which bear true live young instead of laying eggs (which is known as "oviparity"). As with mammals, these young are nourished through direct connections to the mother's body during pregnancy, often with some kind of placenta. Likewise, some frogs, fish, and other snakes are known as ''ovoviviparous'': while eggs are laid and develop inside the mother's body, they are not connected to or nourished by the mother's body as in ''euviviparous'' (true live-birthing animal) species, and instead are nourished by a supply of yolk. The young then hatch and come out, giving the appearance of live birth.
100	** Prehistoric marine reptiles, such as [[UsefulNotes/StockDinosaursNonDinosaurs plesiosaurs, ichthyosaurs, mosasaurs, and pliosaurs]], also reproduced this way. In their case, this was justified due to their lifestyle restricting them to the ocean, making it impossible for them to go onto dry land to lay their eggs.
101	** The same can be said for a number of amphibians, including a few frogs and toads, the fire salamander, and several species of caecilians, which also give live birth instead of laying eggs.
102	** The Poeciliidae family of fish (which includes guppies, mollies, platies, swordtails, endlers, and mosquito fish) are known as livebearers for this very reason.
103	** Speaking of fish, seahorses and other members of the family [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syngnathidae Syngnathidae]] are this trope in addition to being MisterSeahorse.
104	** This is, in fact, how vipers (who are ovoviviparous rather than euviviparous) got their name.
105	** Among lizards, the two best-known species that bear live young are horned lizards and blue-tongued skinks. This is actually the reason blue-tongues are relatively expensive to purchase as pets; they don't bear nearly as many young as their egg-laying relatives. There's also a species of lizard that is named for this trait, the viviparous lizard.
106	* Aphids are tiny insects that not only incubate their eggs but are basically born pregnant. Each egg ovulated immediately begins development into an aphid embryo as it travels down the oviduct, and once said embryo's oviducts are developed enough, it starts ovulating itself, even ''before'' it's been born! Naturally, this coupled with the fact that aphids usually breed asexually makes them one of nature's most prolific [[ExplosiveBreeder Explosive Breeders.]]
107	* Some flies give live birth. Many flesh flies have their eggs hatch into larvae within the mother. Tsetse flies and their relatives take this further by gestating their larvae until they're almost ready to pupate. They even raise their larvae on a bug analogue of milk while they're developing.
108	[[/folder]]
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Context Main / PregnantReptile