Epictinae (commonly called slender blind snakes or threadsnakes) are a

subfamily In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus. Standard nomenclature rules end subfamily botanical names with "-oideae", and zoologi ...

of snakes found in the New World and equatorial Africa. Members of this subfamily tend to have short, thick tails, and the fewest

subcaudal scales In snakes, the subcaudal scales are the enlarged plates on the underside of the tail.Wright AH, Wright AA. 1957. Handbook of Snakes. Comstock Publishing Associates (7th printing, 1985). 1105 pp. . These scales may be either single or divided (pair ...

. It comprises two tribes, three

subtribe Subtribe is a taxonomic category ranking which is below the rank of tribe and above genus. The standard suffix for a subtribe is -ina (in animals) or -inae (in plants Plants are predominantly photosynthetic eukaryotes of the kingdom Plant ...

s, ten genera, and 86 species.

Taxonomy

* Tribe Epictini, New World snakes ** Subtribe Epictina *** Genus '' Epictia'' ray, 1845/small> (43 species) *** Genus '' Habrophallos'' artins, Koch, Pinto, Folly, Fouquet, & Passos, 2020/small> collared blind snake *** Genus '' Siagonodon'' eters, 1881/small> (4 species) ** Subtribe Renina *** Genus '' Rena'' aird & Girard, 1853/small> (10 species) *** Genus '' Trilepida'' edges, 2011/small> (14 species) ** Subtribe Tetracheilostomina *** Genus '' Mitophis'' edges, Adalsteinsson & Branch, 2009/small> (4 species) *** Genus '' Tetracheilostoma'' an, 1861/small> (3 species) * Tribe Rhinoleptini, African snakes ** Genus '' Tricheilostoma'' an, 1860/small> (5 species) ** Genus ''

Rhinoleptus ''Rhinoleptus koniagui'', also known commonly as Villiers's blind snake, is a species of snake in the family Leptotyphlopidae. The species, which is indigenous to West Africa, is monotypic in the genus ''Rhinoleptus''. It is among the smallest ...

'' rejas-Miranda, Roux-Estève & Guibé, 1970/small> Villiers's blind snake ** Genus '' Rhinoguinea'' rape, 2014/small> ''Rhinoguinea magna''

Description

Distribution

The subfamily is distributed in the New World and in equatorial Africa. In the New World it ranges from North America (California, Utah, and Kansas) south through Middle and South America (exclusive of the high Andes) to Uruguay and Argentina on the Atlantic side. It also occurs on San Salvador Island (Bahamas), Hispaniola, the Lesser Antilles, Cozumel Island (Mexico), Islas de Bahia and Swan Islands (Honduras), San Andres and Providencia Islands (Colombia), Bonaire, Margarita Islands, and Trinidad. It also occurs in equatorial Africa, from southern Senegal, Guinea, and Bioko Island in the west to Ethiopia in the east.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q3055741 Taxa named by Stephen Blair Hedges Taxa named by Solny A. Adalsteinsson Taxa named by William Roy Branch