Leptotyphlopidae
Encyclopedia
The Leptotyphlopidae are a family
of snake
s found in North and South America, Africa, and Asia. All are fossorial
and adapted to burrowing, feeding on ants and termites. Two genera
are recognized comprising eighty-seven species
.
and L. occidentalis
grow larger. The cranium and upper jaws are immobile and there are no teeth in the upper jaw. The lower jaw consists of a much elongated quadrate bone, a tiny compound bone, and a relatively larger dentary bone. The body is cylindrical with blunt head and short tail. Scales are highly polished. The pheremones they produce protect them from attack by termites. Among these snakes is what is believed to be the world's smallest: L. carlae
(Hedges, 2008).
. In Pacific South America they occur as far south as southern coastal Peru
, and on the Atlantic side as far as Uruguay
and Argentina
. In the Caribbean they are found on the Bahamas, Hispaniola
and the Lesser Antilles
.
e and pupa
e. Most species suck out the contents of insect bodies and discard the skin.
T Type genus
.
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
of snake
Snake
Snakes are elongate, legless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes that can be distinguished from legless lizards by their lack of eyelids and external ears. Like all squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales...
s found in North and South America, Africa, and Asia. All are fossorial
Fossorial
A fossorial organism is one that is adapted to digging and life underground such as the badger, the naked mole rat, and the mole salamanders Ambystomatidae...
and adapted to burrowing, feeding on ants and termites. Two genera
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
are recognized comprising eighty-seven species
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
.
Description
These are relatively small snakes rarely exceeding 30 cm in length; only Leptotyphlops macrolepisLeptotyphlops macrolepis
Leptotyphlops macrolepis, or the Big-scaled blind snake, is a species of snake in the Leptotyphlopidae family....
and L. occidentalis
Leptotyphlops occidentalis
Leptotyphlops occidentalis, or the Western thread snake, is a species of snake in the Leptotyphlopidae family....
grow larger. The cranium and upper jaws are immobile and there are no teeth in the upper jaw. The lower jaw consists of a much elongated quadrate bone, a tiny compound bone, and a relatively larger dentary bone. The body is cylindrical with blunt head and short tail. Scales are highly polished. The pheremones they produce protect them from attack by termites. Among these snakes is what is believed to be the world's smallest: L. carlae
Leptotyphlops carlae
Barbados Threadsnake is a species of blind threadsnake. It is the smallest snake species currently known to exist. This member of the Leptotyphlopidae family is found on the Caribbean island of Barbados....
(Hedges, 2008).
Geographic range
Found in Africa, western Asia from Turkey to northwestern India, on Socotra Island, from the southwestern United States south through Mexico and Central America to South America, though not in the high AndesAndes
The Andes is the world's longest continental mountain range. It is a continual range of highlands along the western coast of South America. This range is about long, about to wide , and of an average height of about .Along its length, the Andes is split into several ranges, which are separated...
. In Pacific South America they occur as far south as southern coastal Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
, and on the Atlantic side as far as Uruguay
Uruguay
Uruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area...
and Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
. In the Caribbean they are found on the Bahamas, Hispaniola
Hispaniola
Hispaniola is a major island in the Caribbean, containing the two sovereign states of the Dominican Republic and Haiti. The island is located between the islands of Cuba to the west and Puerto Rico to the east, within the hurricane belt...
and the Lesser Antilles
Lesser Antilles
The Lesser Antilles are a long, partly volcanic island arc in the Western Hemisphere. Most of its islands form the eastern boundary of the Caribbean Sea with the Atlantic Ocean, with the remainder located in the southern Caribbean just north of South America...
.
Habitat
Occur in a wide variety of habitats from arid areas to rainforest and are known to occur near ant and termite nests.Feeding
Their diet consists mostly of termites or ants, their larvaLarva
A larva is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle...
e and pupa
Pupa
A pupa is the life stage of some insects undergoing transformation. The pupal stage is found only in holometabolous insects, those that undergo a complete metamorphosis, going through four life stages; embryo, larva, pupa and imago...
e. Most species suck out the contents of insect bodies and discard the skin.
Genera
| Genus | Taxon author | Species | Common name | Geographic range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leptotyphlops Leptotyphlops Leptotyphlops is a genus of nonvenomous blind snakes found throughout North and South America, Africa and southwestern Asia. Currently, 86 species are recognized.-Description:... T |
Fitzinger Leopold Fitzinger Leopold Joseph Franz Johann Fitzinger was an Austrian zoologist.Fitzinger was born in Vienna and studied botany at the university of Vienna under Nikolaus Joseph von Jacquin... , 1843 |
86 | Slender blind snakes, thread snakes | Africa, southwestern Asia, on Socotra Island, from the southwestern United States south through Mexico, Central America and South America as far as Uruguay Uruguay Uruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area... and Argentina Argentina Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires... . In the Caribbean Caribbean The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north... they are found on the Bahamas (San Salvador Island San Salvador Island San Salvador Island, also known as Watlings Island, is an island and district of the Bahamas. Until 1986, when the National Geographic Society suggested Samana Cay, it was widely believed that during his first expedition to the New World, San Salvador Island was the first land sighted and visited... ), the Dominican Republic Dominican Republic The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries... , Haiti Haiti Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island... , Hispaniola Hispaniola Hispaniola is a major island in the Caribbean, containing the two sovereign states of the Dominican Republic and Haiti. The island is located between the islands of Cuba to the west and Puerto Rico to the east, within the hurricane belt... and the Lesser Antilles Lesser Antilles The Lesser Antilles are a long, partly volcanic island arc in the Western Hemisphere. Most of its islands form the eastern boundary of the Caribbean Sea with the Atlantic Ocean, with the remainder located in the southern Caribbean just north of South America... . |
| Rhinoleptus Rhinoleptus Rhinoleptus is a monotypic genus created for the blind snake species, R. koniagui, found in West Africa. It is among the smallest snakes in the world. No subspecies are currently recognized.-Geographic range:... |
Orejas-Miranda, Roux-Estève and Guibé, 1970 | 1 | Villiers' blind snake | West Africa: Senegal Senegal Senegal , officially the Republic of Senegal , is a country in western Africa. It owes its name to the Sénégal River that borders it to the east and north... and Guinea Guinea Guinea , officially the Republic of Guinea , is a country in West Africa. Formerly known as French Guinea , it is today sometimes called Guinea-Conakry to distinguish it from its neighbour Guinea-Bissau. Guinea is divided into eight administrative regions and subdivided into thirty-three prefectures... . |
T Type genus
Type genus
In biological classification, a type genus is a representative genus, as with regard to a biological family. The term and concept is used much more often and much more formally in zoology than it is in botany, and the definition is dependent on the nomenclatural Code that applies:* In zoological...
.
See also
- List of leptotyphlopid species and subspecies
- List of snakes, overview of all snake genera