HENDERSONVILLE, N.C. (828newsNOW) –

Charlotte the stingray, whose mysterious pregnancy shined a spotlight on Western North Carolina, has passed away.

A Facebook post from the Aquarium & Shark Lab by Team ECCO, located in downtown Hendersonville, announced the sad update Sunday evening, June 30.

“We are sad to announce, after continuing treatment with her medical care team and specialist, our ray Charlotte passed away today,” the post said. “We are continuing to work with her medical care team and research specialist. The Team ECCO family appreciates your continued love and support while we navigate this great loss.”

The aquarium added that it would remain “temporarily closed” while staff continued caring for animals in the building.

Charlotte’s pregnancy was announced in February when the aquarium told media outlets they had a strange phenomenon on their hands. There was no male ray in the tank with Charlotte, so the aquarium theorized that she may have become pregnant through parthenogenesis – defined as a form of “asexual reproduction by self-impregnation resulting in the production of a zygote from an unfertilized egg,” according to BiologyOnline.com. “Thus, it is also referred to by many as ‘virgin birth.'”

The aquarium also floated another, less likely idea around her pregnancy. In a livestream on Facebook, the aquarium’s owner Brenda Ramer said they had put two male sharks in the tank with Charlotte at one point and they did find bite marks on her — something Ramer said sharks do when they mate.

“Either way, we have very unique juju going on here,” Ramer said with a laugh at the time.

Charlotte’s mysterious predicament captured the attention of the world, even landing her a spot on ‘Saturday Night Live.’ Her fame shined a spotlight on Hendersonville, bringing even more tourism to the aquarium. 

After months of no pups, questions began to arise about the viability of Charlotte’s pregnancy. Then in May, the aquarium announced Charlotte had been diagnosed with “a rare reproductive disease that has negatively impacted her reproductive system.” They later confirmed in early June that Charlotte was not pregnant.

On June 30, the aquarium announced Charlotte had passed away. 828newsNOW has reached out to the aquarium for any further information they can provide. This story will be updated with any new information.