Amphisbaenidae

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Superphylum: Deuterostomia
Phylum: Chordata
Cladus: Craniata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Infraphylum: Gnathostomata
Superclassis: Tetrapoda
Cladus: Reptiliomorpha
Cladus: Amniota
Classis: Reptilia
Cladus: Eureptilia
Cladus: Romeriida
Subclassis: Diapsida
Cladus: Sauria
Infraclassis: Lepidosauromorpha
Superordo: Lepidosauria
Ordo: Squamata
Cladus: Unidentata Episquamata

Subordo: Lacertoidea
Infraordo: Lacertibaenia
Cladus: Amphisbaenia

Familia: Amphisbaenidae
Genera (12): Amphisbaena – Ancylocranium – Baikia – Chirindia – Cynisca – Dalophia – Geocalamus – Leposternon – Loveridgea – Mesobaena – Monopeltis – Zygaspis

Name

Amphisbaenidae Gray, 1865
References
Primary references

Gray, J.E. 1865. A revision of the genera and species of amphisbaenians with the descriptions of some new species now in the collection of the British Museum. Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London 1865: 365–377. BHL

Additional references

Loveridge, A. 1941. Revision of the African lizards of the family Amphisbaenidae. Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology 87: 353–451. BHL Reference page.
Vanzolini, P.E. 1951. A systematic arrangement of the family Amphisbaenidae (Sauria). Herpetologica 7(3): 113–123. JSTOR Hybrid open access journal
Gans, C. 2005. Checklist and bibliography of the Amphisbaenia of the world. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 289: 1–130. hdl: 2246/457 Paywall Reference page.
Mott, T. & Vieites, D.R. 2009. Molecular phylogenetics reveals extreme morphological homoplasy in Brazilian worm lizards challenging current taxonomy. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 51(2): 190–200. DOI: 10.1016/j.ympev.2009.01.014 Paywall Reference page.
Ribeiro, S., Nogueira, C., Cintra, C.E.D., Silva Jr., N.J. & Zaher, H. 2011. Description of a new pored Leposternon (Squamata, Amphisbaenidae) from the Brazilian Cerrado. South American Journal of Herpetology 6(3): 177–188. DOI: 10.2994/057.006.0303 Reference page.
Measey, G.J. & Tolley, K.A. 2013. A molecular phylogeny for sub-Saharan amphisbaenians. African Journal of Herpetology 62(2): 100–108. DOI: 10.1080/21564574.2013.824927 Paywall Reference page.

Vernacular names
Deutsch: Eigentliche Doppelschleichen
English: Typical Worm Lizards
português do Brasil: Cobras-de-duas-cabeças

The Amphisbaenidae, common name worm lizards, are a family of amphisbaenians, a group of limbless vertebrates.

Geographic range

Amphisbaenids occur in South America, some Caribbean islands, and sub-Saharan Africa.
Taxonomy

One deep-branching and somewhat aberrant genus, Blanus, is native to Europe, and may represent a distinct family.[1] More recent sources indeed place it in the family Blanidae.[2]
Description

Members of the family Amphisbaenidae are limbless, burrowing reptiles with carnivorous diets. As in other amphisbaenians, the body bears rings of scales, which gives amphisbaenids a worm-like appearance. The head is massively constructed and used for burrowing, with powerful jaws and large, recurved teeth used for seizing prey. Some species have a spade-like head, while others have a narrow keel on the head, and still others have a rounded skull.[1] The eyes are highly reduced, while the ear bone, or stapes in the middle ear, is large and massive. Together with another bone, the extracollumella, the stapes detects vibrations caused by prey items, allowing amphisbaenids to hunt for invertebrates under ground. In this respect, apparently evolution exists convergent to the burrowing mammalian family Chrysochloridae, in which the malleus in the middle ear is greatly enlarged.[3][4]
Genera
Chirindia langi

Over 170 extant species are in the family, grouped into 12 genera:

Amphisbaena Linnaeus, 1758
Ancylocranium Parker, 1942
Baikia Gray, 1865
Chirindia Boulenger, 1907
Cynisca A.M.C. Duméril & Bibron, 1839
Dalophia Gray, 1865
Geocalamus Günther, 1880
Leposternon Wagler, 1824[5]
Loveridgea Tornier, 1899
Mesobaena Mertens, 1925
Monopeltis A. Smith, 1848
Zygaspis Cope, 1885

Fossil record

A number of extinct taxa are known from the fossil record:[6]

†Campinosaurus
†Listromycter
†Lophocranion
†Platyrhachis

References

Gans C (1998). Cogger HG; Zweifel RG (eds.). Encyclopedia of Reptiles and Amphibians. San Diego: Academic Press. p. 216. ISBN 978-0-12-178560-4.
Amphisbaenidae at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 1 February 2017.
Mason, Matthew J. (2003-08-01). "Morphology of the middle ear of golden moles (Chrysochloridae)". Journal of Zoology. 260 (4): 391–403. doi:10.1017/S095283690300387X. ISSN 1469-7998.
Mason, Matthew J.; Narins, Peter M. (2001-01-01). "Seismic Signal Use by Fossorial Mammals". American Zoologist. 41 (5): 1171–1184. doi:10.1093/icb/41.5.1171. JSTOR 3884562.
Ribeiro, Síria; Vaz-Silva, Wilian; Santos, Alfredo P., Jr. (2008). "New pored Leposternon (Squamata, Amphisbaenia) from Brazilian Cerrado". Zootaxa 1930: 18-38. ("Leposternon Wagler, 1824", p. 18).

"Amphisbaenidae Gray 1865". Paleobiology Database. Fossilworks. Retrieved 1 February 2017.