First record of dicephalia in a bull shark foetus from the Gulf of Mexico

Published online on 25. March 2013

First record of dicephalia in a bull shark Carcharhinus leucas (Chondrichthyes: Carcharhinidae) foetus from the Gulf of Mexico, U.S.A.

C. M. Wagner, P. H. Rice, A. P. Pease

ABSTRACT:

The first recorded incidence of dicephalia in a bull shark Carcharhinus leucas is reported from a foetus collected by a fisherman in the Gulf of Mexico near Florida, U.S.A. External examination, Radiography and magnetic resonance imaging revealed a case of monosomic dicephalia where the axial skeleton and internal organs were found to divide into parallel systems anterior to the pectoral girdle resulting in two well-developed heads.

Journal of Fish Biology. Early View Version, doi: 10.1111/jfb.12064

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