At first glance, many people will mistake them for adult earthworms, until the snake’s characteristic forked tongue sticks out, startling them in horror. They are actually a species of snake with all the structural features of a snake: a backbone, scales, and a head that raises when crawling.

They are a species of snake called a worm snake, which can be found in many places in Vietnam, from the North to the South, even in big cities like Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. True to its name, the earthworm snake has an appearance very similar to the common earthworm with a round head and a shiny brown color. They often live underground, in piles of rubble or rotting wood.

You have to look closely to realize they are not worms, through the following characteristics: the body is scaly and unsegmented, there are tiny eyes on the head, the mouth can open, and especially the The forked tongue is characteristic of snakes. If earthworms live on humus, the main food of earthworm snakes is ant and termite eggs.

Due to their habit of living in the soil, the worm snake’s eyes degenerate, leaving only a small dot with almost no effect on vision (so in many places they are also called blind snakes). Worm snakes have a dark brown color similar to the color of earthworms but darker.

Another strange feature of worm snakes is that they can reproduce without a male. Earthworms lay about 8 eggs at a time. In this type of reproduction without fertilization, all eggs that hatch are female.

This snake is found throughout Vietnam, Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia, and Singapore. It has also been recorded from Africa, the Middle East, the rest of tropical Asia and parts of temperate Asia, the Pacific islands, and the Americas (Mexico, United States). ), Australia.

The number of this snake species is relatively small, perhaps due to its own survival characteristics and parthenogenesis, not necessarily due to human activities.

Below are some general images of strange worm snakes:

Worm snakes have an appearance very similar to common earthworms.

The only difference is that they have scales…

And the unmistakable tongue of a snake.

Close-up of the worm snake’s head.

Unlike the round head like a worm’s, the worm snake’s tail is quite pointed.

Compared to common snakes, they are truly “tiny” snakes.

An adult worm snake is only approximately 20cm long, smaller than a large earthworm.

This is a non-venomous snake.

Even if they are venomous, they are harmless, because their mouths are too small and weak to cause damage to the surface of human skin.

Although widely distributed in Vietnam, worm snakes are still quite a rare species.