The generation of neurons in the right number and proportions is vital for the formation of a functional central nervous system (CNS). However, embryos can be exposed to stressors, such as hypoxia, viral infections and genetic abnormalities, that induce cell death. Thus, precision in cell generation is not sufficient to guarantee function, compensatory mechanisms to correct for cell loss are likely necessary and have been observed in diverse species. Here, we show that zebrafish retina recovers from cell loss during development via sustained proliferation at the ablated region. These proliferative cells also show a local delay in transition to neurogenic state, while the rest of retina underwent neurogenesis as in wildtype. We futher explored the molecular signatures regulating the observed proliferative behaviour, and failed to detect active Notch and/or Yap signalling associated with it.