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Citation: Midtgaard, Rune. RepFocus - A Survey of the Reptiles of the World. (www.repfocus.dk).
Latest update: December 31st, 2022.


Taxonomy of the family Typhlopidae
Bibliography of the genus Letheobia
Biodiversity of the family Typhlopidae








Genus
Letheobia

African Gracile Blind Snakes

Grazile Blindschlangen

Slanke Ormeslanger

1869 Letheobia Cope 1868 (type species: Onychocephalus caecus Dumeril 1856)
Contents: 32 species, of which 19 (59.4%) are endemic.
Endemism: 0% 100%
Remarks: Previously included three species now placed in Afrotyphlops (decorosus, jubanus, obtusus), three other species now placed in Rhinotyphlops (ataeniatus, scorteccii, unitaeniatus), and one other species now reassigned to Typhlops (coecatus). Letheobia was formerly regarded as a synonym of Typhlops (e.g., Boulenger 1893) and, more recently, of Rhinotyphlops (e.g., Roux-Estève 1974; Hahn 1980). Formally revalidated by Broadley & Wallach (2007), although the genus had been treated as valid already in some other works (e.g., Broadley, Doria & Wigge 2003; Wallach 2005; Chirio & Ineich 2006).
Distribution: Equatorial Africa, Middle East.
Reported from: Angola, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo-Brazzaville, Congo-Kinshasa, Equatorial Guinea (Rio Muni), Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Israel, Jordan, Kenya, Liberia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sao Tome & Principe (Principe, Rolas Island, Sao Tome), Somalia, South Sudan, Tanzania (incl. Pemba, Zanzibar), Togo, Turkey, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

Letheobia acutirostrata

Irebu Gracile Blind Snake

Irebu-Blindschlange

Irebu-ormeslange

1916 Typhlops acutirostratus Andersson
Letheobia acutirostratus Wallach 2005

Remarks: Previously regarded as a synonym of caecus (e.g., Hahn 1980). Treated as a valid species by Wallach (2005) and Broadley & Wallach (2009).
Distribution: Congo-Kinshasa.


Letheobia akagerae

Akagera Gracile Blind Snake

Akagera-ormeslange

Akagera-Blindschlange

2018 Letheobia akagerae Dehling, Hinkel, Ensikat, Babilon & Fischer

Distribution: Rwanda.





Letheobia caeca

Congolese Gracile Blind Snake, (Dumeril's Blind Snake, Gabon Blind Snake)

Kongolesische Blindschlange

Congolesisk Ormeslange

1856 Onychocephalus caecus Dumeril
Typhlops caecus Jan 1864
Letheobia caeca Cope 1868
Rhinotyphlops caecus Roux-Estève 1974
Letheobia caeca Broadley & Wallach 2007
1923 Typhlops avakubae Schmidt (Hahn 1980)
1961 Typhlops caecus pitmani Witte (Hahn 1980)

Remarks: Reports from Sierra Leone (e.g., Aylmer 1922; Hahn 1980; McDiarmid, Campbell & Touré 1999) are considered erroneous (Trape & Baldé 2014).
Distribution: Cameroon, Congo-Brazzaville, Congo-Kinshasa, Equatorial Guinea (Rio Muni), Gabon, Ghana, Guinea.


Letheobia crossii

Nigerian Gracile Blind Snake

Nigerianische Blindschlange

Nigeriansk Ormeslange

1893 Typhlops crossii Boulenger
Rhinotyphlops crossi Roux-Estève 1974
Letheobia crossi Broadley & Wallach 2007

Distribution: Nigeria, Togo.


Letheobia debilis

Feeble Gracile Blind Snake

Zentralafrikanische Blindschlange

Centralafrikansk Ormeslange

1990 Rhinotyphlops debilis Joger
Letheobia debilis Chirio & Ineich 2006

Distribution: Central African Republic.


Letheobia episcopa

Turkish Gracile Blind Snake

Türkische Blindschlange

Tyrkisk Ormeslange

2002 Rhinotyphlops episcopus Franzen & Wallach
Letheobia episcopus Broadley & Wallach 2007

Distribution: Turkey.


Letheobia erythraea

Eritrean Gracile Blind Snake

Eritreische Blindschlange

Eritreisk Ormeslange

1928 Typhlos erythraeus (typographical error [=Typhlops erythraeus]) Scortecci
Rhinotyphlops erythraeus Largen 1978
Letheobia erythraea Broadley & Wallach 2007

Remarks: Previously regarded as a synonym of somalicus (e.g., Largen 1978; Hahn 1980). Revalidated by Largen (1978).
Distribution: Eritrea.


Letheobia feae

São Tomé Gracile Blind Snake, St. Thomas Blind Snake

São-Tomé-Blindschlange

São Tomé-ormeslange

1906 Typhlops feae Boulenger
Rhinotyphlops feae Roux-Estève 1974
Letheobia feae Broadley & Wallach 2007
1906 Typhlops principis Boulenger (Hahn 1980)

Distribution: Equatorial Guinea (Corisco Island), Sao Tome & Principe (Principe, Sao Tome).


Letheobia gracilis

Urungu Gracile Blind Snake, (Slender Blind Snake)

Urungu-Blindschlange

Urungu-ormeslange

1910 Typhlops gracilis Sternfeld
Rhinotyphlops gracilis Roux-Estève 1974
Letheobia gracilis Broadley, Doria & Wigge 2003
1933 Typhlops katangensis Witte (Hahn 1980)
1933 Typhlops leptosoma Witte (Hahn 1980)
Typhlops gracilis leptosoma Laurent 1960

Distribution: Burundi, Congo-Kinshasa, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe.


Letheobia graueri

Lake Tanganyika Gracile Blind Snake, (Grauer's Gracile Blind Snake)

Lake-Tanganyika-Blindschlange

Lake Tanganyika-ormeslange

1912 Typhlops graueri Sternfeld
Rhinotyphlops graueri Roux-Estève 1974
Letheobia graueri Broadley & Wallach 2007
1956 Typhlops leptosoma polli Laurent (Hahn 1980)
Typhlops gracilis polli Laurent 1960

Remarks: Although reported from Rwanda (e.g., Hahn 1980; McDiarmid, Campbell & Touré 1999; Spawls, Howell, Drewes & Ashe 2002), presence in the country needs confirmation (Spawls, Howell, Hinkel & Menegon 2018 [by implication]).
Distribution: Burundi, Congo-Kinshasa, Tanzania, Uganda.


Letheobia jubana

Juba Gracile Blind Snake

Juba-Blindschlange

Juba-ormeslange

2007 Letheobia jubana Broadley & Wallach
Afrotyphlops jubanus Hedges, Marion, Lipp, Marin & Vidal 2014

Remarks: Reassigned to the genus Letheobia by Pyron & Wallach (2014).
Distribution: Somalia.


Letheobia kibarae

Upemba Gracile Blind Snake

Upemba-Blindschlange

Upemba-ormeslange

1953 Typhlops kibarae Witte
Typhlops gracilis kibarae Laurent 1960
Rhinotyphlops kibarae Roux-Estève 1974
Letheobia kibarae Broadley & Wallach 2007

Distribution: Congo-Kinshasa.


Letheobia largeni

Gambela Gracile Blind Snake, (Largen's Gracile Blind Snake)

Gambela-Blindschlange

Gambela-ormeslange

2007 Letheobia largeni Broadley & Wallach

Distribution: Ethiopia.


Letheobia leucosticta

White-spotted Gracile Blind Snake

Weissfleckiger Blindschlange

Hvidplettet Ormeslange

1898 Typhlops leucostictus Boulenger
Letheobia leucostictus Broadley & Wallach 2007

Remarks: Reports from Sierra Leone (e.g., Aylmer 1922) need confirmation (Trape & Baldé 2014).
Distribution: Guinea, Liberia.


Letheobia lumbriciformis

Zanzibar Gracile Blind Snake, Wormlike Blind Snake

Zanzibar-Blindschlange

Zanzibar-ormeslange

1874 Onychocephalus lumbriciformis Peters
Typhlops lumbriciformis Boulenger 1893
Rhinotyphlops lumbriciformis Roux-Estève 1974
Letheobia lumbriciformis Broadley & Wallach 2007
1904 Typhlops kleebergi Werner (Hahn 1980)

Distribution: Kenya, Tanzania (incl. Zanzibar).


Letheobia mbeerensis

Mbeere Gracile Blind Snake

Mbeere-Blindschlange

Mbeere-ormeslange

2016 Letheobia mbeerensis Malonza, Bauer & Ngwava

Distribution: Kenya.


Letheobia newtonii

Rolas Island Gracile Blind Snake

Rolas-Blindschlange

Rolas-ormeslange

1890 Typhlops newtonii Bocage
Rhinotyphlops newtoni Roux-Estève 1974
Letheobia newtoni Broadley & Wallach 2007
1920 Typhlops naveli Angel (Hahn 1980)

Remarks: Although reported from Principe by some authors (e.g., Hahn 1980; Schätti & Loumont 1992; McDiarmid, Campbell & Touré 1999; Blanc & Fretey 2002), the species appears to be restricted to Sao Tome and its satellite, Rolas Island (Hofer 2002; Pollo 2017).
Distribution: Sao Tome & Principe (Sao Tome, incl. Rolas Island).


Letheobia pallida

Pallid Gracile Blind Snake, (Zanzibar Blind Snake)

Tansanianische Blasse Blindschlange

Tanzaniansk Bleg Ormeslange

1868 Letheobia pallida Cope
Typhlops pallidus Boulenger 1893
Rhinothyphlops pallidus Roux-Estève 1974

Remarks: Endemic to Zanzibar. Older records from outside Zanzibar refer to other species (Broadley & Wallach 2007).
Distribution: Tanzania (Zanzibar).


Letheobia pauwelsi

Gabon Gracile Blind Snake, (Pauwel's Blind Snake)

Gabun-Blindschlange

Gabon-ormeslange

2005 Letheobia pauwelsi Wallach

Distribution: Gabon.


Letheobia pembana

Pemba Gracile Blind Snake

Pemba-Blindschlange

Pemba-ormeslange

2007 Letheobia pembana Broadley & Wallach

Distribution: Tanzania (Pemba).


Letheobia praeocularis

Flat-headed Blind Snake

Flachkopf-Blindschlange

Fladhovedet Ormeslange

1894 Typhlops praeocularis Stejneger
Rhinotyphlops praeocularis Roux-Estève 1974
Letheobia praeocularis Broadley & Wallach 2007
1964 Typhlops praeocularis lundensis Laurent (Hahn 1980)

Remarks: Records of praeocularis from Nigeria (Rasmussen 1997; Wallach & Gemel 1998; Trape & Baldé 2014) refer to weidholzi (Trape, Kodindo, Djiddi, Mad-Toïngué & Kerah 2020).
Distribution: Angola, Congo-Brazzaville, Congo-Kinshasa.


Letheobia rufescens

Oubangui Gracile Blind Snake

Oubangui-Blindschlange

Oubangui-ormeslange

1916 Typhlops rufescens Chabanaud
Rhinothyphlops rufescens Roux-Estève 1974
Letheobia rufescens Chirio & Ineich 2006
1956 Typhlops vryjdaghi Laurent (Hahn 1980)

Distribution: Central African Republic, Congo-Kinshasa.


Letheobia simoni

Israelian Blind Snake, (Simon's Blind Snake)

Israelische Blindschlange

Israelsk Ormeslange

1879 Onychocephalus simoni Boettger
Typhlops simonii Boulenger 1893
Rhinotyphlops simoni Wallach 1993
Letheobia simoni Broadley & Wallach 2007

Remarks: Although reported by several authors from Syria (e.g., Disi & Böhme 1996; Gruber 1989; Hahn 1980; McDiarmid, Campbell & Touré 1999), presence of the species in the country is doubtful (Martens 1997).
Distribution: Israel, Jordan.


Letheobia somalica

Ethiopian Gracile Blind Snake

Äthiopische Blindschlange

Etiopisk Ormeslange

1895 Typhlops somalicus Boulenger
Rhinotyphlops somalicus Roux-Estève 1974
Letheobia somalica Broadley & Wallach 2007
1905 Typhlops acutirostris Mocquard (Hahn 1980)

Remarks: Erroneously recorded from Somalia by Welch (1982) (Largen & Rasmussen 1993).
Distribution: Ethiopia.


Letheobia stejnegeri

Kasai Blind Snake

Kasai-Blindschlange

Kasai-ormeslange

1931 Typhlops stejnegeri Loveridge
Rhinotyphlops stejnegeri Roux-Estève 1974
Letheobia stejnegeri Broadley & Wallach 2007
1933 Typhlops vanderysti Witte (Hahn 1980)

Remarks: Chippaux & Jackson (2019) included Congo-Brazzaville in the distribution, but no other references have been found to support the presence of the species in the country.
Distribution: Congo-Kinshasa.


Letheobia sudanensis

Garamba Gracile Blind Snake, (Sudanese Blind Snake)

Garamba-Blindschlange

Garamba-ormeslange

1923 Typhlops sudanensis Schmidt
Rhinotyphlops sudanensis Roux-Estève 1974
Letheobia sudanensis Broadley & Wallach 2007

Distribution: Congo-Kinshasa.


Letheobia swahilica

Swahili Gracile Blind Snake

Swahili-Blindschlange

Swahili-ormeslange

2007 Letheobia swahilica Broadley & Wallach

Distribution: Kenya, Tanzania.


Letheobia toritensis

Torit Gracile Blind Snake

Torit-Blindschlange

Torit-ormeslange

2007 Letheobia toritensis Broadley & Wallach

Distribution: South Sudan.


Letheobia uluguruensis

Uluguru Gracile Blind Snake

Uluguru-Blindschlange

Uluguru-ormeslange

1928 Typhlops uluguruensis Barbour & Loveridge
Letheobia uluguruensis Broadley & Wallach 2007

Distribution: Tanzania.


Letheobia weidholzi

Poli Gracile Blind Snake, (Weidholz’s Pink Blindsnake)

Poli-Blindschlange

Poli-ormeslange

2018 Letheobia weidholzi Wallach & Gemel
2019 Letheobia logonensis Trape (syn. Trape, Kodindo, Djiddi, Mad-Toïngué & Kerah 2020)

Remarks: Records of praeocularis from Nigeria (Rasmussen 1997; Wallach & Gemel 1998; Trape & Baldé 2014) refer to weidholzi (Trape, Kodindo, Djiddi, Mad-Toïngué & Kerah 2020).
Distribution: Cameroon, Chad, Nigeria.





Letheobia wittei

Ubangi Gracile Blind Snake, (De Witte's Gracile Blind Snake)

Ubangi-Blindschlange

Ubangi-ormeslange

1974 Rhinotyphlops wittei Roux-Estève
Letheobia wittei Chirio & Ineich 2006

Distribution: Central African Republic, Congo-Kinshasa.


Letheobia wrayi

Sagalla Hill Gracile Blind Snake

Sagalla-Blindschlange

Sagalla-ormeslange

2024 Letheobia wrayi Malonza

Distribution: Kenya.