The world’s smallest snake, the Barbados threadsnake (Tetracheilostoma carlae), has been rediscovered under a rock in central Barbados during an ecological survey in March. The species had been lost to science for almost 20 years and is listed among 4,800 plant, animal, and fungi species considered “lost to science” by Re:wild’s Search for Lost Species initiative.
Measuring just 3 to 4 inches (9–10 cm) long, the threadsnake is at the extreme limit of how small a snake can be. Its rarity and cryptic nature have made sightings extremely scarce, with confirmed encounters separated by decades.
Rediscovery Effort
The rediscovery was part of the Conserving Barbados’ Endemic Reptiles (CBER) project led by the Barbados Ministry of the Environment and Beautification, which has been searching for threadsnakes and other endemic reptiles for over a year.
“Barbados threadsnakes are blind snakes, so they’re very cryptic,” said Connor Blades, a project officer who helped find and photograph the snake.
“There have only been a handful of confirmed sightings since 1889, so very few people have ever seen it.”
The threadsnake closely resembles the invasive Brahminy blind snake, making identification challenging. Using a microscope at the University of the West Indies, Blades confirmed the snake had all the key characteristics of a threadsnake: pale orange dorsal lines from head to tail, eyes on the side of its head, a rostral scale on the nose, and no gland lines on its head.
A Fragile Habitat
The rediscovered snake was found under a rock along a tree root, sharing the microhabitat with an earthworm. It was carefully returned to the forest after examination. These forests, mainly confined to the Scotland District and local gullies, cover only a small portion of the island.
“It’s an important reservoir for biodiversity,” said Blades.
“If the threadsnake population isn’t dense, there’s concern about their ability to find mates, especially if their habitat is degraded.”
Justin Springer, Caribbean program officer for Re:wild, emphasized the broader conservation message:
“The threadsnake’s rediscovery is a call to protect forests in Barbados — not just for the threadsnake, but for other plants, animals, and our natural heritage.”