Peter's Giant Blind Snake
Afrotyphlops schlegelii
Silhouette: Jessica Tingle · PhyloPic
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Chordates)
- ClassSquamata
- FamilyTyphlopidae (Typical Blind Snakes)
- GenusAfrotyphlops
- SpeciesAfrotyphlops schlegelii (Peter's Giant Blind Snake)
About the Peter's Giant Blind Snake
Afrotyphlops schlegelii, commonly known as Schlegel's beaked blind snake or Schlegel's giant blind snake, is a species of snake in the family Typhlopidae. The species is endemic to eastern and southern Africa, and bears the distinction of being the world's largest typhlopid. It is harmless to humans and lives exclusively on a diet of termites.
The specific name, schlegelii, is in honor of German herpetologist Hermann Schlegel. A. schlegelii is found in Angola, Botswana, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, southern Mozambique, northern Namibia, Somalia, South Africa, southern Sudan, Tanzania, northern Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
Three distinct color phases of A. schlegelii are found: uniform, blotched, or striped. Uniform phase specimens are black to brown dorsally, straw-colored ventrally. Blotched phase individuals have black to dark brown irregular blotches dorsally, and are yellow-green to yellow ventrally and on the sides.
The striped phase results from each scale being edged with black. These black lines merge with age. The maximum recorded snout-vent length (SVL) is 95 cm (37+3⁄8... Wikipedia →
Recent sightings of Peter's Giant Blind Snake in Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park
LIVEiNaturalistGlobal Distribution
Warmer areas are where this animal is recorded most often.
Parks Where Found
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kruger National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 2 | iSimangaliso Wetland Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 3 | Hwange National Park | 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe | |
| 4 | Etosha National Park | 🇳🇦 Namibia | |
| 5 | Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa |