The Leptotyphlopidae (commonly called slender blind snakes or thread snakes) are a family of small snakes found in North America, South America, Africa and Asia. All are fossorial and adapted to burrowing, feeding on ants and termites. Two subfamilies are recognized. The body is cylindrical with a blunt head and a short tail. The scales are highly polished. The pheromones they produce protect them from attack by termites. Among these snakes is what is believed to be the world's smallest: L. carlae <small>(Hedges, 2008)</small>.
Geographic range
Leptotyphlopids are found in Africa, western Asia from Turkey to eastern India, on Socotra Island, and from the southwestern United States south through Mexico and Central America to South America, though not in the high Andes. In Pacific South America, they occur as far south as southern coastal Peru, and on the Atlantic side as far as Uruguay and Argentina. In the Caribbean, they are found on the Bahamas, Hispaniola, and the Lesser Antilles.