
very good quiz, Imberbe!
Parthenogenesis has been described before in about 70 species of vertebrates. The problem is the offspring which is only male or only female. In animals whose sex is determined by chromosomes all offspring created due to parthenogenesis will be the same sex. What sex that will be depends on the sex chromosome setup of the individual animal. The offspring produced by parthenogenesis are always female in species that use the XY sex-determination system, and male in those that use the ZW.
Komodo dragons are one species with the WZ chromosome makeup, so all of the parthenogenesis offspring are male. A female Komodo dragon could make use of the ability to reproduce asexually when, for example, a lone female was washed up alone on an island with no males to breed with. Because of the genetics of this process her children would always be male. This is because Komodo dragons have W and Z chromosomes - females have one W and one Z, males have two Zs. The egg from the female carries one chromosome, either a W or Z, and when parthenogenesis takes place, either the W or Z is duplicated. This leads to eggs which are WW and ZZ. WW eggs are not viable, but ZZ eggs are, and lead to male baby Komodo dragons. The mother would be able to switch back to sexual reproduction and she could create an entire population of her own by mating with her male offspring. But to ensure genetic diversity, it is better to look for a mate which is not her offspring.
The New Mexico whiptail is one of few species that has only female members. This animal, which is also the state reptile of New Mexico, reproduces solely through parthenogenesis, and males have become obsolete.