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Digimorph - Ramphotyphlops braminus (Brahminy blind snake) - head |
 | | Like other blindsnake clades (Anomalepididae and Leptotyphlopidae), typhlopids are small (approximately 50950 mm) secretive serpents with smooth, uniformly sized body scales (they lack the enlarged belly scales that characterize most other snakes), highly reduced eyes, a small and ventrally placed mouth, and a very short tail which bears a sharp terminal spine in most species. |
 | | However, the interrelationships among the three clades of blindsnakes remain poorly understood, and the monophyly of Scolecophidia has not yet been strongly corroborated by either morphological or molecular studies. |
 | | Although similar fontanelles are known in several Old World species of Leptotyphlopidae, they have not been noted previously in Typhlopidae. |
| digimorph.org /specimens/Ramphotyphlops_braminus/head/index.phtml (687 words) |
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