Ringed caecilian

Siphonops annulatus · The ringed caecilian is a limbless, burrowing amphibian endemic to South America, living underground east of the Andes.

Also called Ringed Caecilia.

Ringed caecilian
Photo: Vincent A. Vos, CC BY 4.0
Ringed caecilian
Photo: Vincent A. Vos, CC BY 4.0
Ringed caecilian
Photo: Vincent A. Vos, CC BY 4.0

Taxonomy

KingdomAnimalia
PhylumChordata
ClassAmphibia
OrderGymnophiona
FamilySiphonopidae
GenusSiphonops
SpeciesSiphonops annulatus

Where it lives

Moist soils of tropical South America east of the Andes.

Fun facts

  • Its head glands ooze slippery mucus for burrowing, while tail glands are packed with toxic chemicals like those in toad and newt poison glands.
  • It digs tunnels no deeper than 20 cm, using an extra-bony, highly ossified skull as a burrowing tool.
  • Newborns have 44 spoon-shaped teeth used to scrape and eat their mother's skin for about seven minutes, then rest three days while she regrows it.
  • Hatchlings also suckle a fatty, carb-rich, milk-like liquid from their mother's cloaca and grow rapidly within their first week.

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Facts and taxonomy adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).