Virgin Birth?

[Resin]

Hello.

I've had my ball python gal, Ferris, for about sixteen years now. I adopted her when she was just a tiny little hatchling. She is my only snake and she hasn't been in contact with another snake since her siblings when she was born.

Now, here's where things get a little strange.

For the past three years she's laid clutches of eggs. She recently laid her third batch. All previous eggs have been deemed dead via candling. I've looked online and attempted to do research. I know all about parthenogenesis, slugs, all that jazz. From my readings, people seem to think that this is really rare. With Ferris, it's no surprise. I have some pretty basic questions that hopefully someone can answer. Any general insight would be appreciated as well.

How long should I leave the eggs in with her before I remove them? I don't want to stress her unnecessarily.

Has anyone else had their ball lay so many batches of unfertilized eggs?

Has anyone had a ball go through parthenogenesis?

Thank you in advance to anyone that answers. I do appreciate it.

[Willowy]

I'm not sure how common it is in BPs. In some other reptiles, laying unfertilized eggs is common. Birds do it all the time---or we wouldn't have enough eggs to eat! Human females "lay" an egg every month, whether they mated or not . So as rule in nature it's not rare.

It would be very interesting if any were fertile though. I know some species do it but I don't know if it's ever been confirmed in a BP.