Uropeltis


 * Common names: shield-tail snakes, shield-tailed snakes, earth snakes.

Uropeltis is a genus of nonvenomous shield tail snakes endemic to Peninsular India. As of 2022, 26 species are recognized as being valid.

Geographic range
Most Uropeltis species are found in the hills of Peninsular India, mainly in the southwestern parts of the country, including the Western Ghats and, to some extent, also in the Eastern Ghats and in the hills of Central India.

Description
Species in the genus Uropeltis share the following characters. The eye is in the ocular shield. There are no supraoculars nor temporals. There is no mental groove. The tail is conical or obliquely truncated, terminating in a small scute, the end of which is square, or bicuspid with the points side by side.

Species
T Type species.

Nota bene: A taxon author in parentheses indicates that the species was originally described in a genus other than Uropeltis.