Range: Trinidad and northeast Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana through northern Brazil, possibly further south

 

Though commonly referred to as the Guyana blind snake, this species ranges from the northern rainforest coasts of South America in Venezuela and eastern neighboring countries down through northwestern Brazil and possibly into northeast Peru and northern Bolivia (though these records may be from other related species). It is one of the most frequently encountered Leptotyphlopids in the region. They can reach 21 cm in length, with a slender cylindric build, a blunt rounded head with a slight dorsal flattening and only just wider than the neck, and a short blunt tail that tapers rapidly at the tip to end in a short conical spine. Dorsal scale count is 215-233, scale row count 14 reduced to 10 caudally. Coloration is a dark brown to nearly black with a series of eight “zigzag” yellow stripes formed by the lighter edges of each scale running down the body, usually brighter anteriorly. A similarly colored spot covers the snout and the tail tip, and the ventral surface is pale brown. This species can be distinguished from close relatives like E. albifrons by the rounded top of the rostral scale and supraocular touching the upper labial scales.

 

Habitat: damp soil and litter as well as ant and termite nests, occasionally among roots and bark on lower tree trunks.

 

Prey: recorded eating ants, termites, and their larvae, as well as potentially small millipedes.

 

Lifespan and reproduction: lifespan unknown, likely under 10 years. Oviparous.

 

Sources: https://www.inaturalist.org/photos/379504592 Vincent Rufray under https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epictia_tenella

https://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/species?genus=Epictia&species=tenella

John C. Murphy, Mike G. Rutherford & Michael J. Jowers (2016): The threadsnake tangle: lack of genetic divergence in Epictia tenella (Squamata, Leptotyphlopidae): evidence for introductions or recent rafting to the West Indies, Studies on Neotropical Fauna and Environment, DOI: 10.1080/01650521.2016.1234358