For humans, the gestation period can last forty weeks. There are cramps, morning sickness, strange food cravings, increasing discomfort, and a multitude of other effects. And the nine months of pregnancy is often just a prelude to the real drama. All this pain and suffering is for a good reason though.
Scientists are still learning more about when live birth evolved, but one fossil discovery in the South China Sea revealed a 250 million-year-old creature with an embryo in its ribcage. The Dinocephalosaurus fossil was an archosauromorph, a group that includes dinosaurs and modern-day birds and crocodiles. Today, birds and crocodiles just lay eggs. But most mammals aside from the platypus and some snakes, lizards, fish, and amphibians give live birth.
An examination of some of these species’ gestation periods reveals that human mothers don’t necessarily have it the worst out there. Some sharks and even a salamander retain their fetuses for years sometimes before giving birth. So, what animal has the longest gestation period? Here are the 5 longest periods in the animal kingdom.
