Park volunteers patrolling a beach in South Carolina on Wednesday stumbled upon an unexpected surprise: a two-headed baby sea turtle.
A group of patrollers and volunteers at Edisto Beach State Park were doing a routine inventory to check for sea turtle nests when they stumbled upon a rare hatchling, South Carolina State Parks said on Facebook.
The park said they excavate a turtle nest three to five days after it begins to show “signs of a major emergence.” This helps determine the success of the nest, which depends on how many eggs hatch. They also look for live hatchlings that didn’t make it to sea.
The two-headed loggerhead turtle was one of three live hatchlings found in a nest.
“This two-headed hatchling is the result of a genetic mutation,” South Carolina State Parks said. “Other two-headed hatchlings have been found in South Carolina in recent years, but this is the first time the patrol team has encountered one at Edisto Beach State Park.”
Once the group took some photos, the three turtle were released into the ocean.
Most sea turtle are born in the summer, although they can hatch year-round, according to Sea World.
It is critical that humans do not disturb the nest, which can put the survival of the baby turtle at risk. When a turtle nest is disturbed , the hatchlings have a 25% or less chance of survival, according to Sea World.
