''Leptotyphlops'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

of nonvenomous blind snakes, commonly known as slender blind snakes and threadsnakes, in the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Leptotyphlopidae. The genus is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

to and found throughout

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

. Eleven species have been moved to the genus '' Trilepida'', and other species have been moved to the genera '' Epacrophis'', ''

Epictia ''Epictia'' is a genus of snakes in the Family (biology), family Leptotyphlopidae. The genus is native to South America, Central America, and Mexico. Taxonomy Prior to 2009 all species of ''Epictia'' were placed in the genus ''Leptotyphlops''. ...

'', '' Mitophis'', '' Myriopholis'', ''

Namibiana ''Namibiana'' is a genus of snakes in the family Leptotyphlopidae. All of the species were previously placed in the genus ''Leptotyphlops''. Species The genus contains the following species: * ''Namibiana gracilior'', slender threadsnake, slend ...

'', '' Rena'', '' Siagonodon'', '' Tetracheilostoma'', and '' Tricheilostoma''.

Description

Most species of ''Leptotyphlops'' look much like shiny

earthworms An earthworm is a soil-dwelling terrestrial animal, terrestrial invertebrate that belongs to the phylum Annelida. The term is the common name for the largest members of the class (biology), class (or subclass (biology), subclass, depending on ...

. They are generally black, grey, or blackish-brown and their scales give them a segmented appearance. Their common name comes from the fact that their eyes are greatly reduced almost to the point of uselessness, and hidden behind a protective head scale. The species which are called thread snakes are so named because of their very narrow, long bodies.

Behavior

All blind snakes including those of the genus ''Leptotyphlops'' are burrowing snakes, spending most of their time deep in loose soil, typically only emerging when it rains and they get flooded out.

Diet

The primary diet of ''Leptotyphlops'' is

ant Ants are Eusociality, eusocial insects of the Family (biology), family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the Taxonomy (biology), order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from Vespoidea, vespoid wasp ancestors in the Cre ...

and

termite Termites are a group of detritivore, detritophagous Eusociality, eusocial cockroaches which consume a variety of Detritus, decaying plant material, generally in the form of wood, Plant litter, leaf litter, and Humus, soil humus. They are dist ...

larva A larva (; : larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into their next life stage. Animals with indirect development such as insects, some arachnids, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase ...

Species

^T)

Type species In International_Code_of_Zoological_Nomenclature, zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the spe ...

References

External links

* * {{Authority control Snake genera Taxa named by Vivian Frederick Maynard FitzSimons