Among the fish in the Smithsonian Institution’s National History Museum’s collection is a smooth-hound shark with two heads.


The Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History boasts the largest collection of fish specimens in the world.

Over the years, many have been x-rayed as a means of providing those interested an in-depth research tool.

Among the fish caught on film is a smooth-hound shark with two heads.

The image shows that the shark also has two distinct spinal columns.

In whole, the fish measured to be about 6-inches long.

Smooth-hound sharks are typically born at just under a foot and grow to be about 2-and-a-half feet in length.

The two-headed one was preserved in its larval stage.

While it may be unusual, it's far from being the only intriguing inclusion in the x-ray archives.

Currently on tour nationwide is an exhibition featuring several of the research images taken over the years.

Titled “X-ray Vision: Fish Inside Out,” the traveling show will appear around the country through 2015.

Featured in it are 40 digital prints of many examples including a skate wing, a longnose butterfly fish, and a viper moray eel.

One of the show curator’s is Sandra Raredon who’s been working at the Smithsonian for the last 27 years.