Afrotyphlops blanfordii

Afrotyphlops blanfordii
Conservation status
Data Deficient  (IUCN 3.1) [1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Suborder:	Serpentes
Family:	Typhlopidae
Genus:	Afrotyphlops
Species:	A. blanfordii
Binomial name
Afrotyphlops blanfordii (Boulenger, 1899)
Synonyms [2]
Typhlops blanfordii Boulenger, 1899 Afrotyphlops blanfordii — Broadley & Wallach, 2009

Afrotyphlops blanfordii, commonly known as Blanford's blind-snake, is a species of snake in the family Typhlopidae. ^{[1] [2] [3]} The species is native to the Horn of Africa.

Geographic range

Afrotyphlops blanfordii is found in Eritrea and Ethiopia, at elevations of 980–2,450 m (3,220–8,040 ft) above sea level. ^{[1] [2]}

Etymology

The specific name, blanfordii, is in honour of English naturalist William Thomas Blanford. ^{[2] [4]}

Taxonomy

Afrotyphlops blanfordii is similar to Afrotyphlops lineolatus , and the two may even be conspecific. ^[1]

Description

Afrotyphlops blanfordii may attain a total length (including a short tail) of 32 cm (13 in). Dorsally, the body is olive-grey, with the basal half of each dorsal scale blackish. Ventrally, it has a narrow whitish strip running down the middle. ^[5]

Habitat

The preferred natural habitats of A. blanfordii are grassland, shrubland, and forest. ^[1]

Behaviour

Afrotyphlops blanfordii is fossorial and terrestrial. ^[1]

Reproduction

Afrotyphlops blanfordii is oviparous. ^[2]

References

1. Spawls, S. (2021). "Afrotyphlops blanfordii". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2021 e.T178513A42505520. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2021-1.RLTS.T178513A42505520.en .
2. Afrotyphlops blanfordii at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 13 November 2020.
3. "Afrotyphlops blanfordii (Boulenger, 1889)". Integrated Taxonomic Information System . Retrieved 13 November 2020.
4. Beolens B, Watkins M, Grayson M (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN   978-1-4214-0135-5. (Typhlops blanfordii, p. 27).
5. Boulenger (1893).

Further reading

• Boulenger GA (1889). "Descriptions of new Typhlopidæ in the British Museum". Annals and Magazine of Natural History, Sixth Series4: 360–363. (Typhlops blanfordii, new species, p. 363).
• 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 blanfordii, p. 39 + Plate II, figures 5a–5c).
• Broadley DG, Wallach V (2009). "A review of the eastern and southern African blind-snakes (Serpentes: Typhlopidae), excluding Letheobia Cope, with the description of two new genera and a new species". Zootaxa2255: 1–100. (Afrotyphlops blanfordii, new combination, p. 34)
• Largen MJ, Spawls S (2010). Amphibians and Reptiles of Ethiopia and Eritrea. Frankfurt am Main: Edition Chimaira / Serpents Tale. 694 pp. ISBN   978-3899734669.