SEEING DOUBLE - A TWO HEADED TURTLE BORN AT TEXAS ZOO
The San Antonio Zoo in Texas has welcomed a bizarre new addition - a two-headed turtle named Thelma and Louise. The female Texas cooter was born with four others on June 18 and is now on display at the zoo's Friedrich Aquarium - swimming and walking as normally as her one-headed brothers and sisters. Zoo spokeswoman Debbie Rios-Vanskike said that the turtle appears healthy and that staff do not predict her condition will cause any future health problems. The two-headed critter was named Thelma and Louise after the female duo in the 1991 Oscar-winning road movie of the same name. Craig Pelke, the curator of reptiles, amphibians and aquatics at the zoo, said that seeing bicephalic animals is uncommon, but it is not unheard of in the wild or in captivity. The condition is most common among snakes and turtles. 'At this time, Thelma and Louise are doing well on exhibit and eating with both heads,' Pelke added. Speaking to JewishNewsOne, he added that the turtle has a 'split' personality. 'The right side was looking around very curious and the left side was trying to bite me,' he said. The San Antonio Zoo is no stranger to two-headed reptiles. The facility was home to a two-headed Texas rat snake named Janus from 1978 until the creature's death to 1995. The condition has been seen among other species, too. In March, a two-headed shark was found by a fisherman in the Gulf of Mexico when he opened the uterus of an adult shark. In April, a two-headed pig was born in China. And earlier this month, a two-faced cat named Deucy was born in Oregon but later died from underlying health conditions.
Other great stories
LOVE BIRDS
THESE LOVE BIRDS can’t keep their beaks off each other as they share a very public display of affection .
DARK DISNEY
THESE are the Disney Princesses you wouldn't want to run into in a dark alley .
ELECTROSENSITIVITY: USING AN IPAD COULD MAKE ME MISCARRY AGAIN
A mother-to be has told how she cannot go near an iPad in case she suffers another miscarriage due to her intense sensitivity to electromagnetic waves .
ROAD KILL ON THE MENU
A ROAD KILL munching Scot has chewed on everything from a dead squirrel to an unlucky crow – all in the name of art .
WOMAN TAUNTED FOR HUGE FEET OPENS STORE
A woman branded the Jolly Green Giant by SOLE-crushing school bullies for her whopping size nine feet has had the last laugh by opening a shoe shop for big footed girls .
UNDERWATER DIVING DOGS
WITH A STERN look of determination on their faces, these adorable pooches perfect their doggy paddle as they dive head first into a swimming pool .
WOMAN REJECTED BY ADOPTION AGENCY DUE TO PREGNANCY PHOBIA
A woman has spoken of her heartbreak after she was rejected by an adoption agency because of her pregnancy phobia .
UNUSUAL ANIMAL FRIENDSHIP
SAT happily on the branch of a tree, this little frog appears unfazed by a surprise visitor .
WOMAN SPENDS £10K TRANSFORMING INTO DISNEY PRINCESSES
Meet the real life princess who has spent £10k transforming herself into nine Disney beauties .
BOY WHOSE BRAIN GREW IN NOSE IS REAL-LIFE PINOCCHIO
A little boy whose brain grew inside his nose has been described as the 'real-life Pinocchio' by his proud mum .
SNEAKY OTTER
A young otter wades through a lake with his eyes set on an older rival’s fish .
INCREDIBLE FOG CREATES GLOWING LANDSCAPES OVER TAIWAN
A blanket of fog is lit up by the colourful glowing lights of the city below .