#florida worm lizard

[have-you-seen-this-animal]

ooh how about rhineura floridana? the florida worm lizard :3

Have you seen the Florida worm lizard (Rhineura floridana)?

I have now

Yes, in photos/videos

Yes, irl

I'm not sure

Voting ended onApr 1

This is the only living member of its family.

[keithcurrypochy]

Florida Worm Lizard (Rhineura floridana)

One of the weirdest reptiles in Florida doesn’t look like a reptile at all. The Florida Worm Lizard is a legless lizard that is found in sandy soils of the Florida peninsula. It’s diet consist mostly of earthworms but will eat whatever invertebrates it can find. 

[the-greater-goatsby]

Amphisbaenians

How did I not know about these guys?

So, they're basically lizards without legs, live underground, and look vaguely like earthworms. They aren't snakes, and in fact lost their legs entirely independently from snakes in their evolutionary progression. These guys move in an accordion-like fashion like a worm (peristalsis), rather than slithering like a snake, and can move backwards just as easily as forwards.

Two types in particular jumped out at me.

Rhineuridae (e.g. Florida Worm Lizard): 

These guys lack not only limbs, but functioning eyes as well. While they do still have eyes, they're covered over by skin and scales, rendering the eyes useless and the lizard blind. They just look really darn cool, and barely resemble anything I'd call a lizard (or even a reptile).

Links if you'd like to learn more:

http://www.wildflorida.com/wildlife/lizards/Florida_Worm_Lizard.php

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhineuridae

And here's video and a couple pictures, for reference.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_hbgPMkCgOs

I can't help but feel that it looks like a klutzy, epileptic snake when it tries to move around above ground.

Ajolotes (e.g. Mexican Mole Lizard):

Mole Lizards are adorable. They managed to retain their eyes, as well as their two forelimbs, which have adapted into mole-like digging claws. There's not a whole lot else to say, except that I want one twelve.

More Info:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bipes_biporus

Video and Images:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1CxUTuHy6xE&feature=related