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new species
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by puffadder7 on August 3, 2008
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SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - A U.S. scientist said Sunday he has discovered the globe's tiniest species of snake in the easternmost Caribbean island of Barbados, with full-grown adults typically stretching less than 4 inches (10 centimeters) long.
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S. Blair Hedges, an evolutionary biologist at Penn State University whose research teams also have discovered the world's tiniest lizard in the Dominican Republic and the smallest frog in Cuba, said the snake was found slithering beneath a rock near a patch of Barbadian forest.
Hedges said the tiny-title-holding snake, which is so diminutive it can curl up on a U.S. quarter, is the smallest of the roughly 3,100 known snake species. It will be introduced to the scientific world in the journal "Zootaxa" on Monday.
"New and interesting species are still being discovered on Caribbean islands, despite the very small amount of natural forests remaining," said Hedges, who christened the miniature brown snake "Leptotyphlops carlae" after his herpetologist wife, Carla Ann Hass.
The Barbadian snake apparently eats termites and insect larvae, but nothing is yet known of its ecology and behavior. Genetic tests identified the snake as a new species, according to Hedges. It is not venomous.
Zoologist Roy McDiarmid, curator of amphibians and reptiles at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History in Washington, said he has seen a specimen of the diminutive creature. He saw no reason to argue with the assertion that it is the world's smallest snake.
McDiarmid said the Barbados creature is a type of thread snake, also called worm snake, which are mostly found in the tropics. "We really know very little about these things," he said in a Sunday telephone interview from his Virginia home.
Finding the globe's tiniest snake demonstrates the remarkable diversity of the ecologically delicate Caribbean. It also illustrates a fundamental ecological principle: Since Darwin's days, scientists have noticed that islands often are home to both oversized and miniaturized beasts.
Hedges said the world's smallest bird species, the bee hummingbird, can be found in Cuba. The globe's second-smallest snake lives in Martinique. At the other end of the scale, one of the largest swallowtail butterflies lives in Jamaica.
Scientists say islands often host odd-sized creatures because they're usually inhabited by a less diverse set of species than continents. So island beasts and insects often grow or shrink to fill ecological roles that otherwise would be filled by entirely different species.
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RE: new species
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by iLuVeNoM on August 4, 2008
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This topic was on our most listened to radio morning show this morning. Lots of calls came in about people running in to this worm snake. The snake described and shown in the pic w/ the quarter has been in and around Hawaii for over 30 years. When I was a kid I used to see it on the westside of Honolulu where I grew up. We also used to see it on the North Shore and on the island of Kauai.
Same exact snake, black, blind, wet looking and found deep in the soil. I wonder what the difference is between the species, or if they are the same. I've seen only about 10-15 in my lifetime so they are quite rare it seems - or else they reside deeper in the ground than we thought. I'll be catching my next one in so I can turn it into the zoo, see what they say.
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RE: new species
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by Cro on August 5, 2008
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Craig, the snake that you have in Hawaii is the Brahminy Blind Snake (Ramphotyphlops braminus).
The snake found in Barbados is the Carlae Threadsnake (Leptotyphlops carlae).
They both share the habit of burrowing around in leaf litter and friable soils. A snake this tiny has to remain hidden in the day, as it would easily fall prey to a sharp eyed bird that is looking for worms. Although they look quite similar, they are actually very different animals.
The Brahminy Blind Snake is a native of Southeast Asia, however, it has spread around the world with the importation of potted tropical plants. We have them here in Georgia (I have only found one in the wild), and they are in Florida, and Lousianna, and probably other SE States.
As far as the Leptotyphlops, that Genus is very large. It is represented by 86 Species in North and South America, Southwest Asia, and even Africa. These are usual known as Blind Snakes or Thread Snakes.
One thing that is really interesting about your Brahminy Blind Snake, is that it is the only known parthenogenetic snake. The females start laying fertile eggs as soon as they reach sexual maturity. This is the main reason that this snake has spread over such a large area of the world. Only one snake is needed to create a whole population of them.
Best Regards John Z
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RE: new species
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by iLuVeNoM on August 5, 2008
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John, so do you think one would be able to care for and breed them? Or are they simply to fragile an animal?
Also, you wouldn't mind if I called the station and explained those differences you pointed out would you? It'd make me finally feel like a real herpetologist!
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RE: new species
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by Cro on August 6, 2008
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Craig, I think calling the radio station that was talking about the new snake would be a good idea. The more accurate the information that they have, the better.
The only problem is that some radio stations have very egotistical announcers, who will not let people who call in talk, if the people try to correct errors that the stations have made. Hopefully, they will let you talk on the show.
As far as caring for the snakes in captivity, feeding them would be the challenge. You would have to collect things like ant eggs, tiny worms, tiny insects, etc. If they were set up in a damp soil / leaf humus mixture, they would probably do ok.
Best Regards John Z
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RE: new species
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by FSB on August 8, 2008
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John, thanks for the incredibly interesting information about Ramphotyphlops braminus... I'll be checking my exotic potted plants carefully! Arrin, just a gentle suggestion.... when you post a cut-and-paste article from another site, you might want to delete all the extraneous info at the bottom! Lastly, Blair Hedges is one lucky fellow, who according to the radio program I heard about this story, has also discovered the world's smallest frog and lizard species! I also just think it's incredibly romantic to name a new species of snake after your wife. What a gent!
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