Assam’s wildlife officials said a team of herpetologists recorded the striped caecilian (Ichthyophis spp) in the Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve for the first time during a rapid herpetofauna survey conducted recently.
About Caecilians:
The Caecilians are elongated, segmented, limbless amphibians.
They are classified in the order Gymnophiona or Apoda ("without legs").
They belong to the same group of animals that includes frogs and salamanders.
Lacking limbs, caecilians resemble earthworms or snakesin appearance.
The name Caecilian means "blind". Some caecilian species are eyeless, while others have small eyes hidden under their skin.
There are about 200 known caecilian species.
Habitat:
Most caecilians inhabit moist tropical and subtropical regions of South and Central America, South and Southeast Asia, and Sub-Saharan Africa.
Almost all caecilians are terrestrial, but they are elusive as they spend the majority of their lives underground.
They burrow primarily in forests, but also in grassland, savanna, shrubland, and wetlands.
Other Features:
The smaller species measure less than three inches, but the largest one (Caecilia thompsoni from Colombia) grows to almost five feet long.
A hard, thick skull with a pointy snout helps them move effectively through dirt or mud.
Their shiny skin is ringed with skin folds called annuli.
They usually come in shades of gray, brown, black, orange, or yellow.
Some have tiny, fishlike scales within the rings.
They have short, sensory tentacles located between their eyes and nostrils that help them probe their environment and find prey.
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