A two-headed turtle born in late July is thriving under the care of staff at the Royal Thai Navy base in Phang Nga as it celebrates its one-month birthday. The green sea turtle, born in a Thai Navy conservation area in the Similan Islands, was initially earmarked as one of scores of turtles to be set free in Phuket earlier this month as part of a turtle release ceremony to mark Mother’s Day.

All that changed when the organizers realized it had two heads.

Marine biologist Kongkiat Kittiwattnawong of the Phuket Marine Biological Center (PMBC) noted soon after its birth that the turtle was very weak and said its chances of long-term survival were slim. Two-headed turtles are extremely rare, occurring fewer than once in a million live births, he said.

End of August, the turtle was not only doing very well, it had become the star attraction at the Royal Thai Navy Sea Turtle Conservation Center at the Navy Base at Son Ngam Beach in Tai Muang District. The little turtle is perfectly healthy. It is now 1 month old and its shell is getting stronger by the day.
It will take about two months before the conservation center is able to determine its sex and then it will be given a name, which will be announced in the second week of September.