Scolecomorphids have only vestigial eyes, which are attached to the base of a pair of tentacles underneath the snout.

Unlike other caecilians, they have only primary annuli; these are grooves running incompletely around the body, giving the animal a segmented appearance.

All other caecilians have a complex pattern of grooves, with secondary or tertiary annuli present.

Also uniquely amongst tetrapods, the scolecomorphids lack a stapes bone in the middle ear.

[4] At least some species of scolecomorphids give birth to live young, retaining the eggs inside the females' bodies until they hatch into fully formed offspring, without the presence of a free-living larval stage.