Hydrophis curtus
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Elapidae
Genus: Hydrophis
Species:
H. curtus
Binomial name
Hydrophis curtus
(Shaw, 1802)

Hydrophis curtus, also known as Shaw's Sea Snake, short sea snake, but often includes Hydrophis hardwickii[2] is a species of sea snake. Like most Hydrophiinae sea snakes, it is a viviparous, fully marine, and front fanged elapid that is highly venomous.[3] It is collected for a variety of purposes including human and animal food, for medicinal purposes and for their skin.[4]

Description

This species is characterized by a wide variation in number of ventral scales and degree of parietal scale fragmentation.[2] Both sexes possess spiny scales along their bodies but males have more highly developed spines. This sexual dimorphism in spines may play a role in courtship or in locomotion by reducing drag.[2]

Distribution

It is a widely distributed species and like most sea snakes is restricted to warmer, tropical waters. Its range includes:

  • Persian Gulf (Oman, Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, Iran)
  • Indian Ocean (Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, India)
  • South China Sea (north to the coasts of Fujian and Shandong)
  • Strait of Taiwan
  • Indo-Australian Archipelago
  • North Coast of Australia (Northern Territory, Queensland, Western Australia)
  • Philippines (Panay)
  • Pacific Ocean (Myanmar, Thailand, Indonesia, China, Japan, New Guinea)
  • Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Cambodia and Singapore [1]

Taxonomy

Originally considered to be two species of the genus Hydrophis: Hydrophis curtus and Hydrophis hardwickii. Gritis and Voris (1990) examined the morphological variation of over 1,400 specimens across its geographic range and concluded it is most likely a single species.[2][4] As is convention, the species name reverts to the first description by Shaw in 1802. DNA and morphological analysis restored its phylogenic status as a single species.[5] An analysis of the population in 2014 found strong evidence of deep divergence and genetic isolation across the geographical range, supporting a division of the species to Indian Ocean and West Pacific groups and high likelihood of cryptic taxa within those groups.[6]

Hydrodynamic sense

They have corpuscles (scale sensillae) concentrated on the front of their head which may be a hydrodynamic receptor.[7] A study measuring brain response to water vibration found that L. curtus is sensitive to low amplitude (100–150 Hz) water motions.[8] Sensing water motion is useful in locating prey, predators, or potential mates and has been demonstrated in other aquatic animals (e.g. lateral line in fish, whiskers in harbour seals).[9]

References

Notes
  1. 1 2 Rasmussen, A.R.; Crowe-Riddell, J.M.; Courtney, T.; Sanders, K. (2021). "Hydrophis curtus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2021: e.T176746A132780885. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2021-2.RLTS.T176746A132780885.en. Retrieved 18 November 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Gritis, P. & H. K. Voris 1990 Variability and significance of parietal and ventral scales in the marine snakes of the genus Lapemis (Serpentes: Hydrophiidae), with comments on the occurrence of spiny scales in the genus. Fieldiana Zool. n.s. (56): i-iii + 1-13.
  3. ↑ Heatwole H. 1999. Sea Snakes. University of New South Wales Press, Sydney.
  4. 1 2 Lukoschek, V., Guinea, M., Cogger, H., Rasmussen, A., Murphy, J., Lane, A., Sanders, K. Lobo, A., Gatus, J., Limpus, C., Milton, D., Courtney, T., Read, M., Fletcher, E., Marsh, D., White, M.-D., Heatwole, H., Alcala, A., Voris, H. & Karns, D. 2010. Lapemis curtus. In: IUCN 2014. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2014.1. www.iucnredlist.org. Downloaded on 26 June 2014
  5. ↑ Sanders, K. L., Mumpuni, Lee M. S. Y. 2010 Uncoupling ecological innovation and speciation in sea snakes (Elapidae, Hydrophiinae, Hydrophiini. J. Evol. Biol. 23 (12):2685-93
  6. ↑ Ukuwela, Kanishka D. B.; de Silva, Anslem; Mumpuni; Fry, Bryan G.; Sanders, Kate L. (September 2014). "Multilocus phylogeography of the sea snake reveals historical vicariance and cryptic lineage diversity". Zoologica Scripta. 43 (5): 472–484. doi:10.1111/zsc.12070. S2CID 52838839.
  7. ↑ Povel, D. , Kooij, J.v.d. 1997. Scale sensillae of the file snake (Serpentes: Acrochordidae) and some other aquatic and burrowing snakes. Neth. J. Zool., 47, 443–456
  8. ↑ Westhoff G, Fry BG, Bleckmann H. 2005. Sea snakes (Lapemis curtus) are sensitive to low-amplitude water motions. Zoology 108, 195-200.
  9. ↑ Dehnhardt G, Mauck B, Bleckmann H (1998) Seal whiskers detect water movements. Nature 394, 235-236.
Sources
  • Anderson, J. 1871 A list of the reptilian accession to the Indian Museum, Calcutta, from 1865 to 1870, with a description of some new species. J. Asiat. Soc. Bengal, Calcutta, 40, part 11(1): 12–39.
  • Rasmussen, A. R. & I. Ineich 2000 Sea snakes of New Caledonia and surrounding waters (Serpentes: Elapidae): first report on the occurrence of Lapemis curtus and description of new species from the genus Hydrophis. Hamadryad, 25(2): 91–99.
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