No one had spotted the world’s smallest known snake for nearly two decades. Some scientists worried that maybe the Barbados threadsnake had become extinct.

The Barbados threadsnake (Tetracheilostoma carlae) was found hiding under a rock in central Barbados during an ecological survey in March.

First spotted in 1889, the Barbados threadsnake is the smallest known species of snake in the world. When fully grown, it’s just three to four inches long—which is shorter than many earthworms—and about the same thickness as a strand of spaghetti, reports the Guardian ’s Taro Kaneko. When curled up, it’s roughly the same size as a quarter.