Comments on: “Monkey-Headed Baby” or Not?

By: tigzy

tigzy — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 10:20:36 +0000

this is an old post i know but being turkish i can safely tell you all its not a fake, this baby was born around the Hatay province of turkey, it lived for one hour before it died. The mother a 21 year old went into labor in the 7th month of her pregnancy and gave birth to this baby.

A professor in the clip says the arms look almost chimpanzee/ape like where they are slightly longer than the legs which is thier characteristic. he attreibutes it to a possible genetic defect from human ancestors.

Also they’re saying that the mouth wasnt fully fornmed yet. the baby died almost as soon as the umbilical cord was cut. Also at the end they refer to another family with a different genetic disorder in the same area where the baby was born, this other family walks on all 4’s and cannot walk upright and have had a documentary filmed about them. I believe channel 9 australias A Current Affair programme helped that family to walk upright by providing them treatment.

By: Mnynames

Mnynames — Sat, 14 Apr 2007 00:57:58 +0000

Well, everyone seems to have pegged anencephaly pretty quickly, so no need to add my 2 cents on that, but i’d just like to say- good use of the “monster of Ravenna”, one of my favourites. She was a teratological child born in Ravenna, Italy, and gained widespread celebrity at the time, for her birth was said to be an omen, and was used as a political tool (Against the pope, I think). Such misfortunate births have been exploited for a very long time…

By: Loren Coleman

Loren Coleman — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 14:06:15 +0000

I have removed the YouTube video from this blog, added briefly after I posted my blog. There is no need for it to be here, and if you must, you can find it at the link.

As I mentioned above, “People have tried to imagine infants with birth disabilities and abnormalities into fantasy animals, fairies, and monsters before.” This broadcast is merely the latest, gross example, which has morphed this sad situation into some kind of entertainment for television viewers. Why humans feel the need to associate this anencephaly event with “monkeys” is unfortunate.

I began this quest to come up with an answer, to separate this from any illusion that this has anything to do with cryptozoology. I feel that goal has been achieved.

By: jayman

jayman — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 17:37:11 +0000

Seems to be a variation on anencephaly, not harlequin, though in anencephaly normally there is a recognizable face with jaw, mouth, and nose.

By: mystery_man

mystery_man — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 14:38:26 +0000

Having just had a baby recently (my daughter is 7 months old), I was pretty repulsed by this video. I can see the merit of making people aware of the horror of this condition, but splashing it across youtube so that some idiots can get there kicks is not only repugnant to me, but indicative of the growing trend of the internet as a place to showcase horrific clips like this. I recently saw a clip in Japan of a person who was choking ferrets (the animal) and posting the clips as entertainment. Seriously, I do not know what is creepier to me, the fact that these clips get put up for all to see, or the fact that there is an audience that wishes to view them. If anyone found this clips to be amusing in any way, then you are not someone I wish to ever know. Period.

By: The_Carrot

The_Carrot — Tue, 10 Apr 2007 17:33:42 +0000

Ditto; this is an anencephalic infant (born with only a brainstem and missing most of the skull). Children born with this condition rarely survive more than a few days.

By: raisinsofwrath

raisinsofwrath — Tue, 10 Apr 2007 14:08:25 +0000

I am both saddened and repulsed that people would see this as entertainment.

I didn’t feel the need to view the video and can only say that it is a heartbreaking situation.

By: kittenz

kittenz — Tue, 10 Apr 2007 11:47:30 +0000

Yes, anencephaly is a real condition. I feel so bad for the family of that little baby. It should not have been made into a freak show for YouTube. Imagine the horror and heartbreak for the family! Not to mention that in many parts of the world, people are superstitious and, not understanding that this is a birth defect, they ostracize the mother or even the entire family of the deformed infant.

By: 12inchPianist

12inchPianist — Tue, 10 Apr 2007 08:01:42 +0000

If I saw the same video, BugMO, then the child you are thinking of is a Harlequin baby. Guitartist mentions it right above your post. Different condition, but just as tragic. They are both birth defects, like being born without arms or being born blind.

In many cultures, people are very superstitious and are more apt to believe in aliens, ghosts et al. The difference in these cultures and ours (speaking of PacNorWest specifically, but others included) is, if a baby is born here with no arms and no legs, we don’t believe that it’s father was a snake.

Of course, if the baby is born and the father runs off with his mistress, than yes. The father is a reptile…. But the baby is still human.

By: BugMO

BugMO — Tue, 10 Apr 2007 03:21:45 +0000

I’ve seen this video at least three times in the past few months and what I’ve learned is that the fetus in this video has a condition called Anencephaly. (which has already been mentioned by elsanto, Jason P., and parkus) In must cases when the fetus is born alive they don’t last very long and most are euthanized. I saw a video a few years back that was supposed to show a half-alien and half-human baby, I think it was from India. But, I’m not sure. I feel sorry for any family that has to go through that.