Hydrophis caerulescens

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iDwarf Seasnake
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Hydrophiidae
Genus: Hydrophis
Species: H. caerulescens
Binomial name
Hydrophis caerulescens
Shaw, 1802

The Dwarf Seasnake (Hydrophis caerulescens) is a species of sea snake. Diagnostic Characters.- Scales on thickest part of body quadrangular or hexagonal in shape, feebly imbricate or juxtaposed; 14-18 maxillary teeth behind front fangs; 2 anterior tempo-rals; scales in 31-43 rows on the neck, 38-54 around midbody (increase from neck to midbody 6-14); ventrals 253-334, distinct throughout though not twice as large as adjacent body scales; bluish gray above, whitish below, with 40-60 broad bands, about twice as wide as interspaces, tapering ventrally (in older adults, bands become indistinct).

Distribution: Indian Ocean (Pakistan, India, Myanmar (= Burma), Thailand, W Indonesia, Malaysia) Coasts of Shandong and Guangdong (China), South China Sea Australia (Queensland), New Caledonia/Loyalty Islands.

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[edit] References

  • Kharin, V.E. 2004 On the taxonomic status of the sea snake Hydrophis caerulescens (Shaw, 1802) (Serpentes: Hydrophiidae). Biologiya Morya (Vladivostok) 30 (3): 227-229