Double Mouthed Laker

[Kettle]

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.mynbc5.com/amp/article/two-mouths-fish-reeled-in-again-on-lake-champlain-new-york/28816101

For those who have not seen this floating around, fish has been caught twice now. Not sure if there is a biologist in the forum or not but would be interesting to hear their opinion. I would just be guessing. Genetic abnormality? Wounded in development? Environmental factor like chemicals? 

[DonkeyHodey]

That's crazy!--Anyone else thinking about the creature in "Alien"?

Knowing there's a regular frequency of genetic abnormalities/embryo problems that occur in humans that are best chalked up to random flukiness, (i.e. cleft palates, conjoined twins, etc...) I put my money on that.   I'm glad they released the fish!--Even if this is a "genetic" problem, it's very unlikely to be heritable (i.e. his/her offspring will almost certainly be normal in the same way that a parent with a cleft-palate has normal children...)   This fish is clearly a survivor.--that "toughness" is heritable.

 

I can't buy the wounding theory...  That picture shows totally normal inner mouth structures--if a wound caused another mouth to grow, it shouldn't be that normal... (think about what happens with scars.)

Chemicals?  doubt it. (...but knowing it's New York, I'm sure they'll try to blame it on plastic grocery bags and ban 'em.  ...Or perhaps blame it on monofilament line or rapala plugs and ban those.)  If there was a significant enough "chemical" exposure you should see more of these and you shouldn't be able to see such an otherwise healthy mouth...

[Wanderer]

I’m going with it just being an abnormality too.

 

Plus I doubt there’s a second one of similar size, especially if the two catches were anywhere near the same part of the lake.

 

I caught a laker with a cut tail while ice fishing several years ago.  Nice fish, posted here.  A week later I caught the same one 303 yards away (by GPS).  It was a little thinner, and didn’t charge as hard as the first time but the length and cut tail was confirmation.

[leech~~]

It's not like freaks of nature have not been around since time began in every living thing.