Order Squamata
Suborder Serpentes (Ophidia) - snakes
Infraorder Henophidia (Boidea)
Family Uropeltidae (Shield-tail Snakes)
Appearance: Uropeltids have no hindlimb vestiges and no eye-covering spectacles. Their name "shield-tailed snakes" is derived from the greek words ura = tail and pelte = shield, indicating the presence of a large keratinous shield at the tip of their tail.
Distribution: Southern India and Sri Lanka.
Habitat: Soil. Uropeltids are burrowing snakes and their anatomy is highly adapted to that lifestyle.
Relationships: Previously, the mainly Indonesian genera Anomochilus and Cylindrophis have been assigned to the subfamily Cylindrophiinae of the family Uropeltidae. Recently they have been assigned family status (Cundall et al. 1993).
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