Barbados Threadsnake: Rediscovery of the World's Smallest Known Snake

Basic Facts

• Name: Barbados threadsnake (Tetracheilostoma carlae)

• IUCN : Critically Endangered

• Size: Fully grown measures up to 10 cm

• Appearance:

  • Has pale yellow dorsal lines

  • Eyes on the side of the head

  • Often confused with flower pot snake (slightly longer and lacks dorsal lines)

• Habitat: Found in Barbados, burrows underground

            

• Diet: Eats termites and ants

• Reproduction: Lays a single, slender egg

• Behavior:

  • Blind, burrowing, cryptic

  • Hard to spot even if present

  • Very rare and elusive

Historical Background

• Last reliably seen in 1889

• Feared to be extinct for nearly 20 years

• Listed among 4,800 "lost to science" species by Re:wild