NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Angola blind snake
Afrotyphlops angolensis (Bocage, 1866)
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The Angola blind snake or Angolan blind snake (Afrotyphlops angolensis) is a species of snake in the Typhlopidae family. While named after its type locality in Angola, it is widespread in Central and East Africa. Specifically, it is found in Angola, northern Zambia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda, and Burundi.
Afrotyphlops angolensis occurs in a variety of habitats, including Afromontane forest, lowland tropical moist forest, grassland mosaic, and bushland. It appears to prefer moister habitats.
Wikipedia contributors, Angola blind snake; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T08:13:35.121806+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Afrotyphlops angolensis (Bocage, 1866)
- Name authority
- (Bocage, 1866)
- Common name
- Angola blind snake
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Reptilia
- Order
- Squamata
- Family
- Typhlopidae
- Genus
- Afrotyphlops
- Extinction status
- Not supplied by this source
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classReptilia Laurenti, 1768
- orderSquamata Oppel, 1811
- suborderSerpentes Linnaeus, 1758
- infraorderScolecophidia Cope, 1864
- familyTyphlopidae
- genusAfrotyphlops
- speciesAfrotyphlops angolensis (Bocage, 1866)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Afrotyphlops. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Kakamega blind-snakeAfrotyphlops kaimosae (Loveridge, 1935) | TyphlopidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Elegant Worm SnakeAfrotyphlops elegans (Peters, 1868) | TyphlopidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Usambara Spotted Worm SnakeAfrotyphlops gierrai (Mocquard, 1897) | TyphlopidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Spotted Blind SnakeAfrotyphlops punctatus (Leach, 1819) | TyphlopidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Bicoloured blind skinkAfrotyphlops nigrocandidus (Broadley & Wallach, 2000) | TyphlopidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Slender Blind SnakeAfrotyphlops obtusus (Peters, 1865) | TyphlopidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Afrotyphlops schlegelii (Bianconi, 1849) | TyphlopidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Steinhaus' Worm SnakeAfrotyphlops steinhausi (Werner, 1909) | TyphlopidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Schmidt’s blind-snakeAfrotyphlops schmidti (Laurent, 1956) | TyphlopidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Calabresi’s blind-snakeAfrotyphlops calabresii (Gans & Laurent, 1965) | TyphlopidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Afrotyphlops chirioi Trape, 2019 | TyphlopidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Tanga Worm SnakeAfrotyphlops platyrhynchus (Sternfeld, 1910) | TyphlopidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Typhlops (Onychocephalus) congicus Boettger, 1887 Boettger, 1887 | synonym |
| Typhlops ochraceus Laurent, 1952 Laurent, 1952 | synonym |
| Typhlops tornieri Sternfeld, 1911 Sternfeld, 1911 | ambiguous synonym |
| Typhlops dubius Chabanaud, 1916 Chabanaud, 1916 | synonym |
| Typhlops angolensis irsaci Laurent, 1956 Laurent, 1956 | synonym |
| Typhlops angolensis polylepis Laurent, 1956 Laurent, 1956 | synonym |
| Typhlops angolensis symoensi Laurent, 1960 Laurent, 1960 | synonym |
| Typhlops adolfi Sternfeld, 1910 Sternfeld, 1910 | synonym |
| Typhlops lestradei Witte, 1933 Witte, 1933 | synonym |
| Onychocephalus angolensis Bocage, 1866 Bocage, 1866 | synonym |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/species?genus=Afrotyphlops&species=angolensis Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:65JCY. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.