A Female Blind Snake Can Produce Offspring Without Males

At a glance, it would be easy to mistake this blind snake for an earthworm. Kristian Bell / Getty Images

Today, we’re going to explore one of the smallest, most secretive snakes on the planet: the blind snake.These tiny snakes live underground or under leaf litter, and they've evolved to thrive in some pretty unique environments.

Blind snakes are often confused with worms because of their size and appearance. But make no mistake; these are real snakes. Most of them are harmless, and many of them are known for their ability to thrive in urban and agricultural areas.

Let’s slither through a list of some of the more prominent blind snake species!

A Family of Sightless Snakes

Collectively, blind snakes belong to the Typhlopidae family. With over 200 species currently known, they are found in the tropics worldwide, from Africa and Asia to the Americas and even Australia and surrounding islands.

Despite their name, blind snakes aren't completely blind; they just have very small, rudimentary eyes. Technically called "vestigial," these "eyes" are good for registering light intensity, but not much else.

As a rule, blind snakes are on the small side; as mentioned above, they can even be confused with earthworms. If examined closely, however, you'll find that they are true reptiles, with tiny scales and not the smooth slimy skin of invertebrates like the common earthworm (Lumbricus terrestris).

Texas Blind Snake

The Texas blind snake (Rena dulcis) is a tiny, burrowing snake found in the southwestern United States. It has smooth, shiny pinkish brown scales and grows to about 7 to 11 inches (18 to 28 cm) long.

Its head scales resemble its body, making it difficult to distinguish where the head starts. Texas blind snakes are harmless and spend most of their lives underground, feeding on ants and termites.

Brahminy Blind Snake

The Brahminy blind snake (Indotyphlops braminus) is often referred to as the "flowerpot snake" because of its tendency to be accidentally transported in potted plants.

This tiny snake species, also known as the only snake species that reproduces asexually, is native to Southeast Asia but has become an introduced species in many parts of the world, including Hawaii.

For this reason, one of the common names of the Brahminy blind snake is the Hawaiian blind snake. It is also called the common blind snake.

Brahminy blind snakes are parthenogenetic, meaning females can produce up to eight offspring without needing a male. These asexually conceived offspring come from eggs and are genetically identical to the mother.

Island Blind Snakes

The island blind snake (Antillotyphlops) is a genus of 12 different snake species found in the Caribbean. Like other blind snakes, it is fossorial, spending most of its time underground, feeding on small invertebrates.

Island blind snakes are typically only 1 to three 3 long (3 to 8 cm) and are completely harmless to humans. They thrive in a range of habitats, from forests to urban environments, thanks to the snake's incidental introduction to various islands.

Dark-spined Blind Snake

The dark-spined blind snake (Anilios bicolor) is found in southern Australia. Like most blind snakes, they are oviparous, meaning the baby snakes hatch from eggs.

On the larger side (for blind snake species) these snakes can grow up to 16.5 inches (42 cm) in length. Like other snakes in this family, they are nonvenomous and feed on small insects and larvae that they encounter while burrowing through the soil.

We created this article in conjunction with AI technology, then made sure it was edited and fact-checked by a HowStuffWorks editor.