Bizarre “Two-Headed” Creature Spotted in Argentina? Here’s What It Really Was

Originally reported in March 2017, this story quickly went viral—and for good reason.

A strange-looking creature filmed in Santa Fe, Argentina, caught the internet by storm after it appeared to have two heads, three eyes, and weird, snake-like skin. The short video racked up over 19 million views as people around the world tried to figure out what it could be.

The footage was shared on Facebook by Lujan Eroles, the woman who discovered the odd creature in her backyard. Her post exploded—shared over 180,000 times—and sparked tons of speculation. Some people joked it looked like a real-life Pokémon, while others guessed it might be a new species or a rare worm. For weeks, no one knew for sure.

But eventually, the mystery was solved.

Experts identified the animal as a hawk moth caterpillar, a completely harmless insect with an incredible defense trick. When it feels threatened, this caterpillar puffs up its rear end to mimic a snake’s head—complete with realistic-looking eyes and even a “blinking” effect. The illusion is so convincing that predators, like birds, often back off.

While its appearance may be creepy at first glance, the caterpillar isn’t dangerous at all. It’s just one of nature’s coolest examples of mimicry, a survival tactic animals use to avoid becoming someone’s lunch.

Stories like this remind us how fascinating—and downright clever—wildlife can be. Sometimes, the scariest-looking creatures are just harmless little survivors doing their best to stay alive.