amphisbaena

/æmfɪsˈbiːnə/

noun

  1. A mythical serpent having a head at each end of its body, able to move in either direction.

    "1971: What do you call that animal that goes backward and forward, head at each end? —Amphisbaena. A kind of lizard. It doesn't exist. — Anthony Burgess, M/F (Penguin 2004, p. 109)"

  2. A member of a genus of lizards, native to the Americas, having extremities which are very similar.