''Epictia tenella'', also known as the Guyana blind snake, is a species of

blind snake The Scolecophidia, commonly known as blind snakes or thread snakes, are an infraorder of snakes. They range in length from . All are fossorial (adapted for burrowing). Five families and 39 genera are recognized. The Scolecophidia infraorder is mos ...

found on Trinidad in 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 ...

, and in South America, where it ranges from

Guyana Guyana ( or ), officially the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern mainland of South America. Guyana is an indigenous word which means "Land of Many Waters". The capital city is Georgetown. Guyana is bordered by the ...

south to Brazil and northwestern Peru. It can reach a length of 170 mm (6-11/16 in) snout-to-vent. It has a medium brown dorsal surface, with a paler ventral surface and a yellow tail. Its head is dark except for a white to yellow spot covering the upper half of its rostral scale. It is

mesophilic A mesophile is an organism that grows best in moderate temperature, neither too hot nor too cold, with an optimum growth range from . The optimum growth temperature for these organisms is 37°C. The term is mainly applied to microorganisms. Organi ...

. It burrows in damp soil and rotting vegetation, and possibly in ant and termite colonies. It feeds on ants, termites, millipedes, and eggs. File:Epictia tenella 1847.jpg File:Epictia tenella 1847 - cropping.jpg File:Epictia tenella 35966.jpg

References

External links

Leptotyphlops tennela
at the Encyclopedia of Life
Leptotyphlops tennela
at the Reptile Database
iNaturalist page
Epictia Snakes of the Caribbean Snakes of Brazil Reptiles of Colombia Reptiles of Guyana Reptiles of Peru Reptiles of Trinidad and Tobago Reptiles of Venezuela Fauna of the Amazon Reptiles described in 1939 {{Scolecophidia-stub