Science in the Media

I came across this photo and caption on Yahoo News.

Liu Shuping, a farmer specializing in raising pigs, presents a newly-born piglet with one head, two mouths, two noses and three eyes, for photographers in Xi'an, northwest China's Shannxi Province March 6, 2007. Experts attributed it's condition to genetic variation, local media reported. Picture taken March 6, 2007. CHINA OUT REUTERS/China Daily (CHINA)

Despite the opinion of some unnamed “expert”, this little pig does not have a genetic variation. This is a developmental error, not a genetic error. Specifically, we’re looking at a small-scale manifestation of conjoined twins. Makes you wonder who the China Daily considers an expert.