Gierra's blind snake

(Redirected from Typhlops gierrai)

Gierra's blind snake (Afrotyphlops gierrai), also commonly called the Usambara spotted blind snake and the Usambara spotted worm snake, is a species of snake in the family Typhlopidae.[3][4] The species is endemic to Tanzania.

Gierra's blind snake
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Typhlopidae
Genus: Afrotyphlops
Species:
A. gierrai
Binomial name
Afrotyphlops gierrai
Mocquard, 1897
Synonyms[2]
  • Typhlops gierrai
    Mocquard, 1897
  • Typhlops punctatus gierrai
    Barbour & Loveridge, 1928
  • Typhlops gierrai
    Laurent, 1964
  • Rhinotyphlops gierrai
    Broadley & Wallach, 2000
  • Afrotyphlops gierrai
    — Broadley & Wallach, 2009

Etymology

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The specific name, gierrai, is in honor of Mr. A. Gierra, an expert in the languages of North Africa and East Africa, who collected the type specimen.[5]

Geographic range

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A. gierrai is found in the Ukaguru Mountains, the Ulaguru Mountains, and the Usambara Mountains of Tanzania.[2]

Habitat

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The preferred natural habitat of A. gierrai is forest, at altitudes of 600–1,042 m (1,969–3,419 ft).[1]

Reproduction

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A. gierrai is oviparous.[2]

References

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  1. ^ a b Howell K, Beraducci J, Menegon M, Ngalason W, Spawls S (2021). "Afrotyphlops gierrai ". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2021: e.T178405A46181636. Retrieved 18 November 2021.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  2. ^ a b c Species Afrotyphlops gierrai at The Reptile Database www.reptile-database.org.
  3. ^ "Typhlops ". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved August 14, 2010.
  4. ^ McDiarmid, Roy W.; Campbell, Jonathan A.; Touré, T'Shaka A. (1999). Snake Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference, Volume 1. Washington, District of Columbia: Herpetologists' League. 511 pp. (Typhlops gierrai, p. 103).
  5. ^ Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Typhlops gierrai, p. 100).

Further reading

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  • Barbour T, Loveridge A (1928). "A Comparative Study of the Herpetological Faunae of the Uluguru and Usambara Mountains, Tanganyika Territory with Descriptions of New Species". Memoirs of the Museum of Comparative Zoölogy at Harvard College 50 (2): 85–265. (Typhlops punctatus gierrai, new taxonomic status, pp. 106–108).
  • 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". Zootaxa 2255: 1–100. (Afrotyphlops gierrai, new combination, p. 38).
  • Laurent RF (1964). "A Revision of the punctatus Group of African Typhlops ". Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University 130 (6): 387–444. (Typhlops gierrai, p. 417).
  • Mocquard F (1897). "Note sur quelques Reptiles de Tanga, don de M. [=Monsieur ] Gierra ". Bulletin du Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris 3 (4): 122–123. (Typhlops gierrai, new species). (in French).