Title: Two Headed Shark Found by
Fisherman
Author: Brian Clark Howard
Publication: National Geographic
News
Date: 26th March 2013
Yes, it is
exactly what it looks like – A two headed shark!
A bull shark was
captured by a fisherman working off the Florida Keys. When he opened up the
shark, he found a live, very unusual fetus with two heads on it. He gave the
organism to a group of scientists working under Dr. C. Michael Wagner of
Michigan State University and he explained that this phenomenon is the first
double headed shark ever recorder in bull sharks, and one of only around a
dozen total double headed sharks in the world.
Axial
Bifurcation is the process in which the embryo doesn’t finish splitting into
two different individuals in cases of twins. This mutation is common in other
animals and has been seen in humans as well. Unfortunately these organisms have
a really difficult time surviving in the wild as they have problems finding
food and protecting themselves from predators. They usually die as soon as they
are born and this is what happened with the bull shark as well. The fisherman
predicted that even if it was allowed to be born on its own, it would not have
survived as its body was very petite since most of the energy went into growing
out the two heads.
Studying these
kinds of rare organisms can help us better understand developmental processes
and provide possible research as to why this mutation occurred. This event
raises questions in relation to awareness of the pollutions in our sea and the
health of our oceans.
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