Gerrhopilidae

The Gerrhopilidae are a group of small snakes called Indo-Malayan blindsnakes. They live underground and are found in many places, including India, Sri Lanka, Thailand, the Philippines, Indonesia, and Papua New Guinea. These snakes are part of a larger group called blindsnakes, but scientists discovered in 2010 that they are different enough to have their own family name.

These snakes used to be grouped with other blindsnakes called Typhlopidae, but they were found to be more distantly related. Now, they are placed in their own family, Gerrhopilidae, along with two other families in a group called Typhlopoidea. Scientists think these snakes first lived on a piece of land called Insular India a very long time ago, during a time called the Cretaceous. Later, they spread to other parts of Asia after India moved and joined mainland Asia during a time called the Cenozoic.

One special thing about these snakes is that they have small gland-like structures on their head scales. Some also have special divided scales around their eyes. Scientists believe there are still many more kinds of these snakes that have not been found yet, so there may be many new discoveries in the future.