A two-headed snake may sound like the inspiration for ancient myths or nightmares. But a rare real-life example is currently in residence at a nature center in Kansas City. And it’s harmless — unless you happen to be a rodent.
Tiger-Lily is actually two conjoined female western rat snakes. They’re living in a tank at the Anita B. Gorman Conservation Discovery Center on Troost Avenue while their permanent home at a conservation center in Branson is undergoing construction.
“People love her,” said Stacey Davis, manager of the Conservation Discovery Center, pointing out her shiny black scales and unusual anatomy. “She’s just a beautiful snake.”
A family in Southwest Missouri discovered Tiger-Lily in 2017. They’ve been under the care of the Missouri Department of Conservation ever since. They’re about seven years old and three feet long and could grow to be about 30 years old and five feet long.
Kansas City is the snakes’ last stop on their tour of Missouri. Most recently, they lived at the Burr Oak Woods Nature Center in Blue Springs. They also had surgery at the St. Louis Zoo in March to remove their ovaries, which had developed abnormally.
Both heads have control over the body, although one head can be bossier than the other. During a recent visit, Lily, the head on the snakes’ left side, was dragging Tiger, the right head, around their tank.
The Conservation Discovery Center feeds Tiger-Lily baby mice about once a week. Although the two heads share one digestive system, they both need to be fed separately. If one head gets too controlling and prevents the other from eating, staff will put a cone made out of a Dixie cup on the more aggressive head.
“They both like their share of food,” Davis said. “Lily, as a whole, tends to eat more than Tiger does.”
If you find an unusual animal like Tiger-Lily, you can take a photo if you like, but it’s best to leave it alone, Davis said. You can report some wildlife sightings or health concerns to the conservation department.
Brian Greene, a herpetologist and associate professor of biology at Missouri State University, said he’s not sure how common it is for snakes to be conjoined. But western rat snakes are found in every county in Missouri.
“It lives in a lot of different habitats,” he said. “Everything from farmland to forests to even urban areas.”
Many people have misconceptions or fears relating to snakes, Greene said. But rat snakes are not venomous and are harmless to humans. They typically eat small mammals like mice and squirrels. They may bite if they are threatened, but those bites are not a serious health threat.
In some parts of the country, Greene said, it’s rumored that rat snakes can breed with venomous snakes like copperheads. But that’s not actually possible.
“There’s no possible way that would ever happen,” he said. “They’re just too different genetically to make that work.”
Rat snakes like to live in backyards or outbuildings like barns. If you don’t want your yard to be a habitat for snakes, Greene suggests clearing it of objects they can use for cover.
“Snakes are part of the wildlife, just like squirrels and birds,” he said. “They're just going to be there.”
Tiger-Lily will be at the Anita B. Gorman Discovery Conservation Center until Sept. 28.
