Not Cleaning Up the Block!

Many landholders like to have a spic and span property- dead trees removed, sticks and leaves raked up and dead branches turned into firewood. Very nice the property looks then - to our eyes anyway but to our often-unseen neighbours, homelessness is the result.

The loss of many of our species- birds, reptiles, butterflies,insects and small mammals can be sheeted home directly to loss of habitat. The rarely seen Blind Snake (Ramphotyphlops sp) has been captured on film here on a covenanted (Trust for Nature) property at Carapooee where all creatures are accorded a home. Here is the adult Blind Snake- head downwards.

And here is the juvenile that had taken up residence in the kitchen- taking Land for Wildlife a bit far perhaps!

Blind snakes live on ant eggs, pupae and larvae as well as ants themselves.

They are vocal at times, non-venomous, lay eggs and produce 3-5 young. According to the Field Guides we have 3 or 4 possible species here-

Can anyone help with identification of these facinating reptiles.