Amphisbaenidae

Red amphisbaenian ( amphisbaena alba)

The authentics amphisbaenians ( Amphisbaenidae ) are a family of Squamata ( Squamata ). There are legless lizards that occur in sub-Saharan Africa and in Central and South America.

Features

Actual amphisbaenians are ten to 70 inches long. Your shoulder and pelvic girdles are reduced or completely disappeared. They are highly adapted to a grave lifestyle, have a strongly ossified skull and a short tail. Unlike snakes and other legless lizards, whose left lung is smaller, it is at the authentics amphisbaenians and all other amphisbaenians the right.

Heads and snouts of authentics amphisbaenians adapted to the way of their trench. The blunt- headed genera amphisbaena and Zygaspis push their heads only forward. Leposternon and Monopeltis species have a spade -shaped snout and dig the earth from the bottom up. Anops and Ancylocranium species have a wedge-shaped, laterally flattened head, they pivot to the right while digging from the left.

Reproduction

Most authentics amphisbaenians are oviparous ( lay eggs ), some species of the genera Loveridgea and Monopeltis are viviparous.

Genera

There are about 160 species in 16 genera.

  • Amphisbaena Linnaeus, 1758
  • Ancylocranium Scortecci, 1930
  • Anops Bell, 1833
  • Aulura Barbour, 1914
  • Baikia Gray, 1865
  • Bronia Wiegmann, 1828
  • Cercolophia Bush, 1881
  • Chirindia Boulenger, 1907
  • Cynisca Duméril & Bibron, 1839
  • Dalophia Gray, 1865
  • Geocalamus Günther, 1880
  • Leposternon Hemprich, 1820
  • Loveridgea Tornier, 1899
  • Mesobaena Mertens, 1925
  • Monopeltis Smith, 1848
  • Zygaspis Peters, 1854

The previously counted among the genera Amphisbaenidae Blanus and Cadea are now placed in their own families.

John Edward Gray Middle America (region) Oviparity Digital Object Identifier
57725
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