09/14/2025
Identifying blind snakes in your garden: How to tell them apart from worms and other snakes.
Blind snakes, often mistaken for earthworms, are small, burrowing reptiles with unique adaptations for underground life. They possess smooth scales, vestigial eyes, and a diet of ants and termites. These secretive creatures play a vital ecological role by controlling insect populations and aerating soil. Distinguishing them from worms involves observing their slithering movement, scaled bodies, and distinct head.
Blind snakes are small, burrowing reptiles often mistaken for earthworms because of their slender, cylindrical bodies and underground lifestyle. Their smooth, shiny scales, tiny vestigial eyes, and uniform coloration give them a worm-like appearance, making identification challenging. Unlike worms, blind snakes are true reptiles with a distinct head, slithering movement, and a specialised diet of ants, termites, and insect larvae. They play an important ecological role by controlling insect populations and aerating soil through their burrowing activities. Despite being rarely seen above ground, these secretive snakes are fascinating creatures, adapted perfectly for life beneath the surface.
Why blind snakes look like worms
Blind snakes have smooth, shiny scales and tiny, vestigial eyes covered by scales, making them effectively blind. Their small size, uniform colour, and movement through soil closely resemble earthworms, which often leads to misidentification by gardeners and nature enthusiasts. These snakes spend most of their lives underground, surfacing only occasionally, further contributing to the confusion. Unlike worms, blind snakes have a distinct head, a tapered tail, and slithering movement rather than wriggling.
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