THESE are the shocking pictures of the human-like creature born from a goat in central Zimbabwe.

Defying science, the dead human-like being survived for several hours after birth on Sunday but died later as shocked villagers gathered in rural Maboleni, 40 miles out of the Midlands town of Gweru, to witness the “miracle”.

The creature, which was incinerated by superstitious villagers before it could be taken for lab tests, had what looks like a human head, face, nose, mouth, neck and shoulders but also had goat legs and a tail. It also had human-like skin and back.

Midlands Governor Jason Machaya claimed on Wednesday that the bizarre creature was a product of bestiality. He declared: “An adult human being was responsible.”

But experts say it is impossible for a human being to have sex with an animal and produce an offspring of any kind.

Inter-breeding humans with closely allied species like chimpanzees, gorillas and gibbons has been attempted with no results, experts say.

There are few known species that can interbreed and produce offspring of varying degrees of fertility, including horses and donkeys which produce mules which are infertile. Bison and cattle produce beefalos while lions and tigers produce ligers – both infertile.

The Midlands’ Provincial Veterinary Officer Dr Thomas Sibanda, while regretting that they never got the chance to conduct tests on the bizarre creature, said: “As far as I know, it is not scientifically possible for a man to impregnate a beast unless of course it’s a miracle.

“Inter-breeding is so hard that a sheep and a goat can mate but they will never produce any product out of it.”

Is it a baby? ... The bizarre creature strikes pose of sleeping human baby

Locals now fear that the creature was a product of witchcraft, but Dr Sibanda still wants to give science a chance. He said: “It is common that an animal can be born with the hydrocephalus condition, a condition that causes an animal to have an abnormally big head full of water. This condition can cause the normal positions of the chin, nose and ears to shift.

“We could have confirmed that the creature was a goat if we had seen it since we are experts in animals. To confirm whether it was a human being, you need medical doctors.”

The handling of the bizarre incident has disappointed researchers who feel an opportunity has been missed to find scientific answers to what would appear to be a supernatural occurrence.

The creature was set on fire after local politicians, led by the governor and a local chief, had been to visit the goat’s owner.