Description
Lectotype: BMNH RR 1946.9.5.24 (1910.3.18.84), adult, from the west side of Mt. Seychellois, altitude 1200 ft. Mahé, collected in 1910 by J. Stanley Gardiner.

Paratype: BMNH RR. 1946.9.5.25 (1910.3.18.85 yg), Cascade, Mahé; collected in 1910 by J. Stanley Gardiner.

Short caecilian species, generally less than 112 mm; tentacle closer to nostril than to eye, separated from the eye by a distance three times as great as that from the nostril; scales present; teeth in four series; tongue with narial plugs; short tail with one or two folds behind the vent, which is narrowly transverse with denticles fore and aft and larger median lateral ones bearing small anal glands; primaries not known to exceed 70 in count; distance between the eyes is less than the length from eye to snout tip; snout projects strongly beyond the mouth; first collar behind the occiput is well defined with short transverse dorsal and ventral grooves, second collar is approximately the same size with a longer transverse dorsal groove; brown with grooves slightly lighter, ventral surfaces are somewhat lighter with a yellow cream spot present at the vent (modified from Taylor 1968).

Distribution and Habitat

Country distribution from AmphibiaWeb's database: Seychelles

	View distribution map in BerkeleyMapper.
	View Bd and Bsal data (1 records).

Seychelles Islands: endemic to Mahé and Silhouette islands

Typically all Hypogeophis (formerly Grandisonia brevis) species are fossorial and can be found under leaves, stones, decaying wood, and in wet soil. Distribution is thought to be limited to the availability of moist habitat rather than elevation.

Life History, Abundance, Activity, and Special Behaviors

All species of this genus are believed to be oviparous. It has been reported that H. brevis is a direct developing species.

Hypogeophis (formerly Grandisonia brevis) is known from two specimens which were collected in 1910 from Mahé island. It is recently reported from Silhouette islands (IUCN 2018) but its distribution is not well known.

Trends and Threats
A permit is required for their collection. They are potentially endangered by habitat destruction.

Possible reasons for amphibian decline

General habitat alteration and loss
Habitat modification from deforestation, or logging related activities

References

IUCN SSC Amphibian Specialist Group. 2018. Hypogeophis brevis (amended version of 2013 assessment). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2018: e.T59559A125192602. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2013-1.RLTS.T59559A125192602.en.

Nussbaum, R. A. (1984). ''Amphibians of the Seychelles.'' Biogeography and Ecology of the Seychelles Islands. D.R. Stoddart , eds., Dr. W. Junk Publishers, Boston, 379-415.

Taylor, E.H. (1968). The Caecilians of the World. A Taxonomic Review. University of Kansas Press, Lawrence, Kansas.

Wake, M.H. (1977). ''The reproductive biology of caecilians: an evolutionary perspective.'' Reproductive Biology of Amphibians. D.H. Taylor and S.I. Guttman, eds., Plenum Press, New York., 73-101.

Species Account Citation: AmphibiaWeb 2021 Hypogeophis brevis <https://amphibiaweb.org/species/1890> University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA. Accessed Apr 19, 2024.

Citation: AmphibiaWeb. 2024. <https://amphibiaweb.org> University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA. Accessed 19 Apr 2024.

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