Nature never ceases to surprise, just like the extremely rare two-headed snake a man from Ndwedwe, South Africa, found in his garden. He quickly scooped it into a jar to avoid other people from encountering it and possibly harming the snake. Then he contacted local snake rescuer Nick Evans to rescue and rehome the rare reptile.
Animals born with two or more heads are diagnosed with a rare condition called polycephaly, which is more common in reptiles, such as the snake, than in mammals.
Nick's Most Bizarre Salvage Operation
Nick was surprised to see the Southern Brown Egg-eater spitting in the man's garden and considered it his most bizarre salvage operation. Even though the breed is completely harmless, its two heads are enough to frighten anyone who may come across it.
He told new outlet IOL, that the snake may look frightening, but it was just as terrified as him. He did not want anyone to harm it and the man did a good job putting it inside a jar. Nicks collected the snake and took it away to be rehomed.
According to Daily Star, it was Nick's first time encountering a two-headed snake despite working as a professional serpent wrangler for many years. Upon closer inspection, he found that the snake was partially deformed and only measured around 30cm long.
Nick finds the snake's behavior very interesting. He noticed that the heads would sometimes try to go in opposite directions and other times, would rest one head on the other, which is more effective for moving compared to the other method.
However, it is unfortunate that animals with polycephaly do not generally live for long, especially in the wild. Nick says that these animals can barely move and when they do, they are incredibly slow, making them an easy target for predators. It was a surprise to him that the snake he rescued lived for too long if it hatched a week ago.
Animals With Polycephaly
Animals with polycephaly are common in legends, myths, and folk tales, and rarely appear in real life. According to AZ Animals, these animals are mysterious as there are no naturally two-headed animal species. If there are animals with this condition, it is considered a birth defect. Animals most likely born with polycephaly are snakes, turtles, lambs, pigs, dogs, and cats.
As to what causes it, experts explain that these animals could have been monozygotic (identical) twins, but something went wrong during the cell division process resulting in two heads or conjoined bodies.
Typically, identical twins develop when an embryo splits into two. Meanwhile, fraternal twins are a result of two eggs being fertilized at the same time with two different sperm cells.
Aside from their scary appearance, two heads is a disadvantage for any animal because it gives them an oddly-shaped body that sometimes restricts their movement, making them more vulnerable in the wild.
Some famous polycephalic animals are Image the kitten, a two-headed southern black racer (non-venomous snake), the Perth kitten, the two-headed baby loggerhead hatchling named Squirt and Cash, the two-headed bearded dragon named Paris and Nicole, and two-faced kitty Frank and Louie.
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