TWO-HEADED TROUT

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXII, Issue 22191, 19 August 1935, Page 10

TWO-HEADED TROUT

SOME STRANGE FREAKS HEN GROWS COCK'S PLUMAGE PHENOMENA AT HATCHERIES [by telegraph—OWN correspondent] NAPIER, Sunday Few people have seen a trout with two heads or two bodies or a hen pheasant, which, after moulting, has grown all the glorious plumage which Nature has given to the male species, yet theso phenomena are to bo soon to-day at the hatcheries and game farm at Taradalf> of the Hawke's Bay Acclimatisation Society. The curator, Mr. F. D. Hobson, has a tub containing about 50 freak trout only a few weeks old. There is ouo trout with a perfect body, but with two heads; then there are two pairs of trout joined in the manner of Siamese twins: these freaks swim round their tub quite unconcerned and seem not a whit perturbed by tho fact that they are not like normal trout. Mr. JRobson expressed tho opinion that a number of tho freaks would grow to full-sized trout. Ho intended to take special care of them, and, of course, would not release them in tho streams of tho district. As a matter of fact, ho added, freak trout were not particularly uncommon; one a foot long was caught at Taupo some time ago. and had two heads. No less interesting than the freak trout is Mr. Robson's freak pheasant. Before the moulting season last year this particular pheasant was just one of a large number of hens and waa tho proud mother, in fact, of young pheasants; but after Nature had called upon it to cast off its last year's feathers it created 110 little stir amoijig its fellows. Instead of growing again the rather drab brown and grey feathers of the female pheasant, it took to itself the glorious-coloured plumage which has been the prerogative of tho cock pheasant; even its short drab tail feathers grew long and beautiful. It lives in a big run in company with other pheasants of both sexes and their attitude toward their freak companion indicates that they do not altogether approve of this Jekyll and Hyde business, because neither hen nor cock pheasants seem eager to seek its company. FREAK FISH RARE CHANGES IN BIRDS' SEX The opinion that freak fish of the nature described in the telegram were jrare was expressed by several authorities yesterday. The fact that there were so many in tho same hatchery probably po.nted to the fact that there had been some disturbance to the ova after they had commenced to develop. It was considered unlikely that the fish would live to any considerable age. In the case of marine fish no record of any such freaks could be discovered, but the improbability of such fish being caught even should they develop may have accounted for this. Cases of twoheaded sharks were mentioned, but these were embryonic. The phenomenon of an apparent change of sex in birds was a well-known one, according to Mr. Gilbert Archey, director of tho Auckland Museum. This waa especially so in the case of hens that had como to tho end of their productive period, and due to a change in the glandular secretions controlling sex. Maleness and femaleness in birds were somewhat closely related and changes from one to tho other had been made artificially by experimenters. Changes such as the one described were noticed more in domestic birils as they were more commonly under observation.