Rhineura floridana, known commonly as the Florida worm lizard,[4] graveyard snake,[5] or thunderworm, is a species of amphisbaenian in the family Rhineuridae. The species is the only extant member of the genus Rhineura,[6][7] and is found primarily in Florida but has been recorded in Lanier County, Georgia.[1] There are no subspecies that are recognized as being valid.[3][4]
| Rhineura floridana | |
|---|---|
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Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Clade: | Amphisbaenia |
| Family: | Rhineuridae |
| Genus: | Rhineura |
| Species: | R. floridana
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| Binomial name | |
| Rhineura floridana (Baird, 1858)
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| Synonyms[3] | |
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Description
editR. floridana varies in total length (including tail) from 18–41 cm (7–16 in).[8] The head has a shovel-like snout that projects forward past the lower jaws, which is used for burrowing. The eyes are highly reduced and not visible externally. The limbs are absent and, as in other Amphisbaenia, the body is covered by scales arranged in rings giving the animal a worm-like appearance.
Habitat
editThe preferred natural habitats of R. floridana are forest and shrubland.[1] More specifically, in xeric and mesic hammocks around northeastern and central Florida.[9] Southern populations have been shown to prefer xeric hammocks.[10]
Behavior
editR. floridana is a burrower, preferring a soil, sand, or leaf mold substrate, and spending most of its time underground where it is safe from predators. It surfaces only when heavy rain or plowing forces it to evacuate its burrow. Because of the former, it is sometimes called thunderworm. When disturbed, it retreats into its burrow tail-first.
Diet
editThe diet of R. floridana includes insects and earthworms, but it is an opportunistic feeder and will eat almost any invertebrate small enough to catch.
Reproduction
editReproduction in R. floridana is by laying eggs (oviparity).[3]
Conservation status
editRhineura floridana is classified as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.[1] Species are listed as such due to their wide distribution, presumed large population, or because it is unlikely to be declining fast enough to qualify for listing in a more threatened category. The population trend is stable.[1]
References
edit- ^ a b c d e Hammerson, G.A. (2007). "Rhineura floridana". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2007: e.T64219A12754148. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2007.RLTS.T64219A12754148.en. Retrieved 18 November 2021.
- ^ "NatureServe Explorer 2.0". explorer.natureserve.org. Retrieved 18 April 2022.
- ^ a b c Rhineura floridana at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 17 February 2022.
- ^ a b "Rhineura floridana". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
- ^ Goin CJ, Goin OB, Zug GR (1978). Introduction to Herpetology, Third Edition. San Francisco: W.H. Freeman and Company. xi + 378 pp. ISBN 0-7167-0020-4. (Rhineura floridana, p. 277, Figure 15-2).
- ^ Rhineura at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 17 February 2022.
- ^ "Rhineura". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
- ^ Wernert, Susan J., ed. (1982). North American Wildlife: An Illustrated Guide to 2,000 Plants and Animals. Pleasantville, N.Y: Reader's Digest Association. p. 171. ISBN 978-0-89577-102-5.
- ^ Bursey, Charles R. (2002). "Paradollfusnema telfordi n. sp. (Nematoda: Cosmocercidae) from the Worm Lizard, Rhineura floridana (Amphisbaenia), of Florida". The Journal of Parasitology. 88 (3): 554–556. doi:10.2307/3285447. ISSN 0022-3395. JSTOR 3285447. PMID 12099425.
- ^ Mulvaney, Abigail; Castoe, Todd A.; Ashton, Kyle G.; Krysko, Kenneth L.; Parkinson, Christopher L. (2005). "Evidence of Population Genetic Structure within the Florida Worm Lizard, Rhineura floridana (Amphisbaenia: Rhineuridae)". Journal of Herpetology. 39 (1): 118–124. doi:10.1670/0022-1511(2005)039[0118:EOPGSW]2.0.CO;2. ISSN 0022-1511.
Further reading
edit- Baird SF (1858). "Description of New Genera and Species of North American Lizards in the Museum of the Smithsonian Institution". Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia 10: 253–256. (Lepidosternon floridanum, new species, p. 255).
- Conant R (1975). A Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern and Central North America, Second Edition. (illustrated by Isabelle Hunt Conant). Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company. xviii + 429 pp. + Plates 1-48. ISBN 0-395-19979-4 (hardcover), ISBN 0-395-19977-8 (paperback). (Rhineura floridana, p. 135 + Plate 13 + map 98).
- Powell R, Conant R, Collins JT (2016). Peterson Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern and Central North America, Fourth Edition. Boston and New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. xiv + 494 pp., 47 Plates, 207 Figures. ISBN 978-0-544-12997-9. (Rhineura floridana p. 323, Figure 156 + Plate 30).
- Smith HM, Brodie ED Jr (1982). Reptiles of North America: A Guide to Field Identification. New York: Golden Press. 240 pp. ISBN 0-307-13666-3 (paperback), ISBN 0-307-47009-1 (hardcover). (Rhineura floridana, pp. 132–133).
- Stejneger L, Barbour T (1917). A Check List of North American Amphibians and Reptiles. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. 125 pp. (Rhineura floridana, p. 72).
- Westphal, Natascha; Mahlow, Kristin; Head, Jason James; Müller, Johannes (2019). "Pectoral myology of limb-reduced worm lizards (Squamata, Amphisbaenia) suggests decoupling of the musculoskeletal system during the evolution of body elongation". BMC Evolutionary Biology. 19 (1): 16. Bibcode:2019BMCEE..19...16W. doi:10.1186/s12862-018-1303-1. PMC 6329177. PMID 30630409.
- Zim HS, Smith HM (1956). Reptiles and Amphibians: A Guide to Familiar American Species: A Golden Nature Guide. (illustrated by James Gordon Irving). New York: Simon and Schuster. 160 pp. (Rhineura floridana, pp. 68, 155).