The Barbados threadsnake (''Tetracheilostoma carlae'') is a species of threadsnake. It is the smallest known snake species. This member of the Leptotyphlopidae family is found on the

Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...

islands of Barbados and Anguilla.

Taxonomy and etymology

The Barbados threadsnake was first identified as a separate species in 2008 by S. Blair Hedges, a herpetologist from

Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsylvan ...

.Dunham, Will. ''Reuters UK'' (3 August 2008). (See: ¶ 5) Hedges named the new species of snake in honor of his wife, Carla Ann Hass, a herpetologist who was part of the discovery team. Specimens already existed in reference collections in the London Natural History Museum and in a museum in California, but they had been incorrectly identified to belong to another species. At the time of publication, August 2008, ''T. carlae'' was described as the snake species with the smallest adults in the world. The first scientific specimens taken by the research team were found under rocks in a forest. The snake is thought to be near the lower size limit for snakes, as young snakes need to attain a certain minimum size to find suitable food.

Description

Tetracheilostoma_carlae_(Leptotyphlops_carlae)

The average total length (including tail) of ''T. carlae'' adults is approximately 10 cm (3.94 inches), with the largest specimen found to date measuring 10.4 cm (4.09 inches) in total length. The snake is said by Hedges to be "about as wide as a spaghetti noodle." The photograph above shows ''L. carlae'' on a

quarter dollar The term "quarter dollar" refers to a quarter-unit of several currencies that are named " dollar". One dollar ( $1) is normally divided into subsidiary currency of 100 cents, so a quarter dollar is equal to 25 cents. These quarter dollars (aka q ...

, a coin with a diameter of 24.26 mm (0.955 inches). The specimen weighed 0.6 grams.

Diet

''T. carlae'' is thought to feed primarily on a diet of termites and ant larvae.

Reproduction

Threadsnakes (Leptotyphlopidae) are

oviparous Oviparous animals are animals that lay their eggs, with little or no other embryonic development within the mother. This is the reproductive method of most fish, amphibians, most reptiles, and all pterosaurs, dinosaurs (including birds), and ...

, laying eggs to reproduce. The female of this snake species, ''T. carlae'', produces only one large egg at a time. The emerging offspring is about half the length of the mother. Small species of snakes such as ''T. carlae'' have relatively large new-born offspring compared to adults. The offspring of the largest snakes are only one-tenth the length of an adult, whereas offspring of the smallest snakes typically are one-half the length of an adult (see figure). The tiny snakes produce only one, massive egg – relative to the size of the mother.

Conservation status

Little is known about the ecology, abundance, or distribution of this species, ''T. carlae''. Essentially, Barbados has no original forest remaining, however, this native species very likely requires a forest habitat for survival since it evolved in the presence of forests. Based on the small number of known specimens and its distribution apparently being restricted to eastern Barbados, the continued survival of the species is a concern.

References

External links

*. {{Taxonbar, from=Q310908 Leptotyphlopidae Reptiles described in 2008 Taxa named by Stephen Blair Hedges Snakes of the Caribbean Reptiles of Barbados Endemic fauna of Barbados Tetracheilostoma