Although it looks like an overgrown worm, this creature, a Typhlops vermicularis, is a snake, albeit a highly simplified one. It is very abundant on the Mediterranean coast of Turkey, especially in spring. I found this one at Olympos, a campers' and stoners' paradise near Antalya.
A fatter Typhlops? NOT! This Blanus strauchi, although superficially similar to a blindsnake, actually belongs to a wholly different group of squamate reptiles. Unlike a blindsnake it has a more rigid body, but looser-fitting skin. This enables it to move backward as easily it moves forward, earning it the Greek name "Amphisbaena", which means something like "both ways."Taxonomically distant but visually similar, these two worm-like reptiles beautifully illustrate convergent evolution in action.
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