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Blair Hedges/New Scientist
Leptotyphlops carlae: the world's
smallest snake
Leptotyphlops carlae: the world's
smallest snake
Despite Extinction and Endangerment, New Species Show Earth Carries On
August 05, 2008 06:04 AM
A tiny new species of snake was discovered in Barbados, illustrating the planet’s amazing ability to reveal new species as others disappear.
30-Second Summary
U.S. scientist S. Blair Hedges stumbled upon the slithery creature beneath a rock in the easternmost Caribbean island. Hedges named the snake “Leptotyphlops carlae” after his herpetologist wife, Carla Ann Hass. He thinks his discovery is the smallest that snakes get.
However, others have disputed Hedges’s claim. Biologist Nathan Kley said most thread snakes are so secretive that they’re able to “escape detection,” and smaller species could still be out there somewhere.
Ironically, Hedges’s snake could be in danger of becoming extinct because it has a limited habitat, just “a few square kilometers of forest on Barbados, where almost all of the original forests have been cleared,” reported National Geographic News.
The discovery is indicative of a fascinating concept: although many species, such as the Narwhal, are in danger of extinction, many new species continue to be discovered. In August 2008 alone, a new species of fungus and dolphin have already been found.
Although scientists say that biodiversity is drastically declining, the causes of the plummet have all been attributed to humans. The responsibility and opportunity to protect endangered species is ours.
However, others have disputed Hedges’s claim. Biologist Nathan Kley said most thread snakes are so secretive that they’re able to “escape detection,” and smaller species could still be out there somewhere.
Ironically, Hedges’s snake could be in danger of becoming extinct because it has a limited habitat, just “a few square kilometers of forest on Barbados, where almost all of the original forests have been cleared,” reported National Geographic News.
The discovery is indicative of a fascinating concept: although many species, such as the Narwhal, are in danger of extinction, many new species continue to be discovered. In August 2008 alone, a new species of fungus and dolphin have already been found.
Although scientists say that biodiversity is drastically declining, the causes of the plummet have all been attributed to humans. The responsibility and opportunity to protect endangered species is ours.
Headline Links: Caribbean discovery
According to the Associated Press, U.S. scientist S. Blair Hedges has discovered the world’s smallest species of snake in Barbados, the easternmost Caribbean island. Hedges named the species, a tiny brown snake able to fit atop a U.S. quarter, “Leptotyphlops carlae.” A full-grown adult member of the species stretches less than four inches.
Source: San Francisco Gate
The New Scientist reports that Hedges “has something of a knack for finding tiny critters.” He was part of two other “world’s smallest” discoveries: a gecko in 2001 and a frog in 1993. The tiny snake he’s just stumbled upon, beneath a rock, “belongs to a family of thread snakes,” with earthworm-looks and rake-like jaws that capture tasty ants and termite larvae.
Source: New Scientist
Background: Secretive thread snakes
CNN reported that thread snakes have “a unique feeding system that may have great evolutionary and ecological importance,” according to a 2000 study. The tiny snakes are “the only known vertebrates to use only their lower jaw to devour prey.”
Source: CNN (Environmental News Network)
According to National Geographic News, a second, “slightly larger” new species was found on St. Lucia, a neighboring Caribbean island. However, biologist Nathan Kley said the Barbados thread snake might not be the world’s smallest, as thread snakes are “extraordinarily small, and most exhibit secretive, burrowing lifestyles, so they often escape detection.”
Source: National Geographic News
Related Topics: In with the new
On Aug. 4, 2008, ScienceDaily reported that a leading fungi expert had found a new species of fungus in Scotland. Dr. Andy Taylor was walking home from work and saw the Xerocomus bubalinus “growing near a lime tree.” The fungus had been seen in the Netherlands in the early 1990s, but had not been recorded in Scotland before.
Source: ScienceDaily
Earlier this month, a tiny dolphin called the Australian snubfin was found in the Kimberly region of Australia. According to The Australian, if the dolphin is found to be a different subspecies than the snubfins found in 2005 off the Queensland Coast, the animals “may reveal even more diversity.”
Source: The Australian
In May 2008, a new species of ants discovered in 2002 were wreaking havoc on electrical appliances in Texas. Named “crazy raspberry ants,” the creepy creatures descended onto Houston through cargo ships and multiplied, shorting out computers, causing fire alarms to malfunction, and confusing scientists.
Source: findingDulcinea
In an April 2008 study, the narwhal “edged out the polar bear for the ranking of most potentially vulnerable in a climate change risk analysis of Arctic marine mammals,” reports the Associated Press.
Source: findingDulcinea
Opinion & Analysis: Animal Kingdom Census
In May 2008, the Living Planet Index showed that biodiversity had “plummeted by almost a third in the 35 years to 2005,” reported The Independent. An animal kingdom census revealed the decline, and attributed it to five human causes: climate change, pollution, habitat destruction, invasive species spread and overexploitation of species.
Source: The Independent
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