Is Charlotte the Stingray Still Pregnant? Here's the Latest as Aquarium Shares Long-Awaited Medical Update

After months of social media speculation, Team ECCO confirmed that Charlotte the California Round Ray has a 'reproductive disease'

Months after making headlines with news of their stingray's mystery pregnancy, a North Carolina aquarium says the fish is facing a rare disease.

Back in February, marine biology organization Team ECCO announced in a livestream video that Charlotte, a California Round Ray at their Aquarium and Shark Lab in Hendersonville, was pregnant and expected to give birth to four pups.

In the initial livestream,  the aquarium’s executive director, Brenda Ramer shared Charlotte’s ultrasound and confirmed that it was possible that she could’ve gotten pregnant through parthenogenesis or mated with one of the fellow sharks that also live in the same tank. The comments around a potential shark-ray hybrid ended up sparking controversy within the science community.

Now, Team ECCO shared in a statement on Instagram that "the reports show that Charlotte has developed a rare reproductive disease that has negatively impacted her reproductive system."

"Our priority is to focus on Charlotte’s health and wellbeing,” Team ECCO said in their May 31 statement, “We will work with, and be guided by, veterinarians and specialists to better understand this disease and the treatment options for Charlotte."

While they did not share information on the specific reproductive disease that Charlotte has, they did confirm that “the research of this disease is limited, we hope that Charlotte’s case and medical treatment will positively contribute to science and be of benefit to other rays in the future.”

Team ECCO also did not clarify whether Charlotte is still or ever was pregnant. The organization did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for comment.

Ahead of the latest news, PEOPLE spoke with Eric Hovland, an animal care specialist at The Florida Aquarium, earlier this week about the stingray's situation. Hovland believes that it wouldn’t be possible for Charlotte to have mated with a shark since “they both have an entirely different reproduction systems,” but that a “virgin birth” isn’t all that uncommon in the animal kingdom.

“[An animal] may have less advantages because there's less genetic diversity, but it’s not the go-to strategy," Hovland, who is not on Charlotte's care team, says.

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Over the last several months, Team ECCO had been unusually quiet about updates around Charlotte’s pregnancy — which they addressed in their Friday statement — which brought up a lot more questions about the fish's health status. 

According to Hovland, the typical pregnancy timeline for a stingray like Charlotte could last around three to four months, but the timing could vary because parthenogenesis "hasn't been documented yet in this particular species."

Before revealing the news about Charlotte’s reproductive disease, Team ECCO’s last update was shared on Facebook on May 17. At the time, they stated that “Charlotte continues to appear healthy and has shown little to no change in any of her behaviors or temperament,” but the aquarium did not release any additional photos or videos.

Of note, Team ECCO's facility is not accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA).  The accreditation ensures that facilities like an aquarium and zoo are up to a specific standard for animal care and public education. It’s not a federal requirement for a zoo or aquarium to have an AZA accreditation. 

Even with all of the social media speculation around Charlotte and Team ECCO, Hovland is glad that it’s gotten “everybody talking about stingrays and sharks and in a positive light.” 

“It helps our public build empathy and curiosity with sharks and rays that can hopefully become infectious so we start to understand the role they play in the wild,” Hovland tells PEOPLE. “That gives me hope that they can start caring about sharks and rays and start changing our behaviors for the better for our whole planet.”

For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!

Read the original article on People.