Afrotyphlops schlegelii
Afrotyphlops schlegelii | |
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Limpopo, South Africa | |
Scientific classification ![]() | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Reptilia |
Order: | Squamata |
Suborder: | Serpentes |
Family: | Typhlopidae |
Genus: | Afrotyphlops |
Species: | A. schlegelii
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Binomial name | |
Afrotyphlops schlegelii (Bianconi, 1847)
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Synonyms[1] | |
Afrotyphlops schlegelii, commonly known as Schlegel's beaked blind snake[2] or Schlegel's giant blind snake,[1] is a species of snake in the family Typhlopidae.[3][4][5] The species is endemic to eastern and southern Africa, and bears the distinction of being the world's largest typhlopid.[2] It is harmless to humans and lives exclusively on a diet of termites.
Etymology
The specific name, schlegelii, is in honor of German herpetologist Hermann Schlegel.[1][6]
Geographic range
A. schlegelii is found in Angola, Botswana, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, southern Mozambique, northern Namibia, Somalia, South Africa, southern Sudan, Tanzania, northern Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.[1]
Description
Three distinct
- Uniform phase specimens are black to brown dorsally, straw-colored ventrally.
- Blotched phase individuals have black to dark brown irregular blotches dorsally, and are yellow-green to yellow ventrally and on the sides.
- The striped phase results from each scale being edged with black. These black lines merge with age.
The maximum recorded
The scales are arranged in 30-44 rows around the body. There are more than 300 scales in the vertebral row (maximum 623).[2]
The snout is very prominent, with a sharp horizontal cutting edge, below which are located the nostrils. The
Habitat
Afrotyphlops schlegelii is found in a variety of habitats, from sandveld to coastal bush.[2]
Behavior
A. schlegelii is fossorial, and very large individuals are found deep underground.[2]
Reproduction
A. schlegelii is
Infraspecific taxa
There are two subspecies:[1]
- Afrotyphlops schlegelii schlegelii (W. Peters, 1860)
- Afrotyphlops schlegelii petersii (Bocage, 1873)
Note: A
References
- ^ a b c d e Afrotyphlops schlegelii at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 4 January 2015.
- ^ ISBN 0-88359-042-5. (Rhinotyphlops schlegelii, p. 54 + Plate 39).
- PMID 23627680.
- ISBN 1-893777-01-4(volume).
- ^ "Megatyphlops schlegelii". Catalogue of Life. Species 2000: Leiden, the Netherlands. Retrieved 22 December 2013.
- ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Rhinotyphlops schlegelii, p. 235).
- ^ Boulenger GA (1893). Catalogue of the Snakes in the British Museum (Natural History)., Volume I., Containing the Families Typhlopidæ ... London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers). xiii + 448 pp. + Plates I-XXVIII. (Typhlops schlegelii, pp. 44–45).
Further reading
- Memorie della Reale Accademia delle Scienze dell'Istituto di Bologna. (Typhlops schlegelii, new species, p. 183). (in Latin).
- .