A two-headed snake named Ben and Jerry has been film devouring two mice using both its mouths at the same time.
Each of the mutated serpent’s heads grabs a rodent – both of which were already dead – and has a feast.
Reptile expert Brian Barczyk filmed the creature in Michigan, US, and shared the footage on his Instagram account.
The double-headed reptile is the result of bicephaly, which occurs from the incomplete splitting of an embryo.
The snake enthusiast said: “So my two-headed snake Ben and Jerry are both eating right now.
“They don’t always eat at the same time actually, in this case both of them are eating each side.”
Ben & Jerrry enjoy their lunch in the clip
He went on to claim that 99 per cent of two headed animals do not reach their first birthday.
But Barczyk now expects the snake – named after the popular ice cream company – to live up to 25 years.
In the video, the brown and yellow animal is seen swallowing the baby mice slowly.
It only has one digestive system and some worried viewers asked if it would choke on the double serving of food.
They were filmed eating two mice at the same time
One commented: “If you watch his vlog he mentions one of them, Jerry I think, won’t take food unless Ben is already eating and for the most part Ben does all the eating but he tried to get Jerry involved too.”
Another wrote: “That is crazy! Can’t wait to go back and check out the place!”
A third asked: “Somebody mind explaining how does a two-headed snake come about…how does this mutation even happen?”
Brian, who also works at a reptile zoo The Reptarium in Michigan, said: “A friend produced them. It is a freak of nature and totally unexpected.
He had a big meal but the snake only has one digestive system
We have about 10 one-of-a-kind animals [in the Reptarium] including Ben and Jerry, also a two headed turtle, and several one-of-a-kind albino and other colour mutations.”
It comes after a cat owner called the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission for help when her pet brought in a two-headed snake into the house.
A spokesperson from the FWCC confirmed the snake was a black racer snake, saying: “This phenomenon, termed bicephaly, is uncommon but happens during embryo development when two monozygotic twins failed to separate, leaving the heads conjoined onto a single body.”
Src: thedailyworld.net
