Identify the four types of venomous snakes of the Ozarks Nathan Papes/News-Leader
When a Hurley teen spotted a snake beneath the deck of his house, his first inclination was to kill it.
On closer inspection, he did a double take.
The snake was among the rarest of creatures — it had two heads and was most definitely alive and thriving.
A quick search on the Internet revealed it was a juvenile western ratsnake, a nonvenomous reptile with a hefty appetite for rodents. The teen spared the snake's life — well, lives.
On Friday the odd snake went on public display at the Shepherd of the Hills Hatchery in Branson, said John Miller, MDC's interpretive center manager at the hatchery.
"They were going to kill it, but those two heads saved it," Miller said. The snake was donated to the hatchery on condition it would be available for the public to see.
"It's a cutie," said Miller, who regularly handles the foot-long snake. "When it's full grown it can get up to 6 feet long."
So far, the snake appears healthy. It's growing and already has shed its skin twice. Miller saved one of the two-headed sheds.
When the snake arrived, Miller faced an unusual problem. He didn't know if one or both heads would eat the baby "pinkie" mice he feeds the creature.
"My biggest concern was if one head wasn't connected to the esophagus," he said. "So I fed it one head at a time to see if it would go down. And, yes, both heads can eat."
Terry Lowery, the teen who found the snake, contacted the Dickerson Park Zoo in Springfield and zoo staff contacted Miller at the Hatchery. Miller has been observing the snake to make sure it is healthy before putting it on display.
"Aside from its two heads, it is essentially one snake,” Miller said. “From the esophagus down, it has all the organs a normal snake would have."
Another question: Is it a boy or a girl? Miller said he'll know in about eight months, when the snake reaches sexual maturity.
He said the Lowery family came up with four names, depending on whether the snake is male or female.
"If it's a boy it's Jeff and Jeffrey," Miller said. "If it's a girl it's Tiger and Lily."
Which head is which? Who knows!
Western ratsnakes — formerly known as black ratsnakes — are common throughout Missouri. Since this one is still in its juvenile stage, the snake has a spotted pattern. As it matures, it will turn a bluish black with a creamy white belly, the color most Missourians are familiar with.
Miller said western ratsnakes are very valuable for a couple of reasons.
"Ratsnakes do eat a lot of rodents, and when they are grown they are big enough to catch and physically eat full-grown rats, which some of our other snakes can't do," he said.
"They also are food for other animals like owls, hawks and eagles. It's true that many farmers like to keep ratsnakes in their barns because they eat so many rodents."
Miller said visitors will have a chance to touch and photograph the two-headed ratsnake when a hatchery staffer takes it out of the cage and holds it for a close-up view.
Two-headed animals are extremely rare, and many don't survive.
“In my 30 years of working with snakes, this is the first time I, personally, have seen one come from the wild," Miller said.