The two-headed turtle found by Jack Baggett
The boy scooped up the tiny reptile and brought it home, hoping his mother would let him keep it as a pet.
But when his parents inspected the turtle under a light, they noticed something odd. A few things, in fact.
"(It had) four eyes and two mouths," Mary Baggett, Jack's mother, said.
The turtle was born with a rare genetic deviation that causes animals and humans to form multiple heads. The condition is called polycephaly, and it is believed to occur when twin embryos fail to fully separate.
After reading about the phenomenon online, Baggett decided to share her son's discovery with experts at the state Museum of Natural Sciences in Raleigh.
"They got right back with us with an enthusiastic explanation of what Jack had found and an offer to add the turtle to the museum," she said.
Greg Skupien, curator of the museum's Naturalist Center, sent Baggett an email explaining that the two-headed turtle was not likely to "survive long in the wild or captivity."
He said the museum could care for the turtle until it died, after which it would be preserved and added to the facility's research collection.
Jack was against the idea at first, according to his mother.
"He really wanted to keep the turtle," she said. "He was real worried about its well-being, but he was on board once I explained the situation to him."
The family traveled to the museum Sunday to donate the turtle. Their visit gave Jack a chance to chat with the museum's herpetologist, a scientist who specializes in the study of reptiles and amphibians.
"(He) had never seen a live two-headed turtle in his whole career," Baggett said.
Parting with the peculiar turtle was bittersweet for Jack, but he still has plenty of critters at home to keep him company, his mother said.
"He has two dogs, two lizards and a little sister."
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