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Brahminy Blindsnake (Indotyphlops braminus*)

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Description

The Brahminy Blindsnake (Indotyphlops braminus) is a tiny (< 179 mm total length), worm-like snake that is glossy, dark gray to dark brown or black dorsally.  The venter is tan, cream, or light yellow.  Encircling the mid-body are 18-20 smooth scale rows – the ventral scales are not differentiated from the dorsals.  The tail is extraordinarily short (1.5-3.0% of total length) and ends in a spine.  The rostral scale is relatively large and the eyes are small and barely distinguishable.  There is one supraocular scale on each side (three scales between the eyes).  The only snakes in the 100-Mile Circle likely to be confused with the Brahminy Blindsnake are the Western Threadsnake (Rena humilis) and the New Mexico Threadsnake (R. dissectus), but the dorsum of those snakes is lighter in color (pink to purplish-silver in Arizona), 14 scale rows encircle the mid-body, and the eyes are clearly visible as dark spots under the ocular scales.  Furthermore, the Western Blindsnake lacks supraocular scales (one scale between the eyes).  Rena and Indotyphlops are the only snakes in Arizona in which the ventral scales are differentiated in neither size nor shape from the dorsals.  This species was until recently known as Ramphotyphlops or Typhlops braminus(Hedges et al. 2014)

The Brahminy Blindsnake is a recent introduction to Arizona (Servoss et al. 2013).  It was first collected 6 November 2007 by P.C. Rosen in urban Tempe, about 0.7 km east of the Interstate 10 and Highway 143 interchange.  Four days later, it was found by Susan Sferra in an urban backyard about 0.5 km northwest of Lookout Mountain Park in Phoenix.  On 20 October 2008, Cathy Kasevich found one of these snakes near the intersection of N Cooper Road and E Chandler Boulevard in Chandler.  Several Indotyphlops were observed or collected at the locality near Lookout Mountain from 2007-2010, suggesting a population is established there. Stacie Beute (pers. comm. 2015) observed two Brahminy Blindsnakes at her house (one was inside her house) in central Phoenix (near 7^th street and Missouri) in or around 2013. She had just purchased potted plants from Home Depot, Baker Nursery, and Whitfill Nursery. The snakes may have come in the soil of those potted plants. The author has heard unconfirmed reports of Brahminy Blindsnakes in a yard in the east valley of Tucson, but as yet, in Arizona the species has not been documented outside of the Phoenix metropolitan area. All Arizona localities are in urban areas at elevations of 350-428 m.  This species is vulnerable to desiccation, which in Arizona may limit it to moist areas, such as irrigated landscaping. Whether it could live in agriculture or along riparian corridors in Arizona is unknown.

Owing to its propensity to be moved from place to place in the soil of potted plants and in soil used as ballast in ships, the Brahminy Blindsnake has been introduced to many temperate and tropical areas of the world.  The species now occurs across southern Asia, Malaysia, Africa, Australia, Japan, the Middle East, the Philippines, Madagascar, several of the United States, at least 15 of the Mexican states, Guatemala, and many islands in tropical and subtropical waters.  Close to Arizona, this species occurs in Sonora (Hermosillo), California, and Baja California Sur.  The native range of the Brahminy Blindsnake is probably in southern Asia, perhaps India (Hedges et al. 2014), but introductions around the globe have obscured its origins.  It is considered the most widely-distributed terrestrial reptile.  In the Phoenix metropolitan area, it was probably introduced via plants from commercial nurseries.

This is a fossorial and nocturnal snake of moist microhabitats, but it can be driven from its subterranean haunts by heavy rainfall, and in fact, all collections and observations at the residence near Lookout Mountain in Phoenix were after heavy rains.  It has been observed in May as well as October through December in the 100-Mile Circle.  The Brahminy Blindsnake is often found under debris or beneath potted plants.  This species is widely thought to be a triploid parthenogenetic, all-female snake species, perhaps the only such parthenogenetic snake in the world.  Females 95-100 mm or greater total length produce clutches of 1-8 viable eggs, without fertilization. However, old reports of males exist, suggesting this may be a complex of unisexual and bisexual species. Recent molecular analysis suggests that 60 or more species may yet to be described in the family Typhlopidae (Marin et al., 2013, Hedges et al. 2014). Reproduction via parthenogenesis enhances the Brahminy Blindsnake’s ability to colonize new habitats because only one individual is needed to start a population and all progeny are capable of producing eggs. Hatchlings resemble adults, but are about 64 mm total length. The diet consists of ants, termites, and their larvae and pupae, but also small beetles and other insect larvae. Earthworms, insect eggs, caterpillars, small crickets, as well as some mosses, fungi, and insect excreta may also be taken.

Although an introduced species, the Brahminy Blindsnake is not known to be detrimental to native herpetofauna or other species because in urban environments it has limited interaction with native species. If it spread to riparian corridors, it could potentially adversely affect native species there.  Over time, it is likely to be found in other towns and cities in southern Arizona, although winter cold likely limits its ability to colonize higher and cooler localities.  With a valid Arizona Hunting license, four Brahminy Blindsnakes may be collected per year or held in possession, alive or dead.       

Suggested Reading:

Conant, R. and Collins, J.T. 1991. A Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern/Central North America, 3rd ed. Houghton Mifflin, Boston and New York.

Ernst, C.H., and E.M. Ernst. 2003. Snakes of the United States and Canada. Smithsonian Books, Washington, D.C.

Hedges, S.B., A.B. Marion, K.M. Lips, J. Marin, and N. Vidal. 2014. A taxonomic framework for typhlopid snakes from the Caribbean and other regions (Reptilia, Squamata). Caribbean Herpetology 49:1–61.

Marin, J., S.C. Donnellan, S.B. Hedges, N. Puillandre, K.P. Aplin, P. Doughty, M.N. Hutchinson, A. Couloux, and N. Vidal. 2013. Hidden species diversity of Australian burrowing snakes (Ramphotyphlops). Biological Journal of the Linnean Society (2013) 110:427–441.

Servoss, J.M., S. Sferra, T.R. Jones, M.J. Sredl, and P.C. Rosen. 2013. Ramphotyphlops braminus (Brahminy Blindsnake). Geographic Distribution. Herpetological Review 44(3):477.

Author: Jim Rorabaugh

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