Hydrophis gracilis
The graceful small-headed sea snake or slender sea snake (Hydrophis gracilis) is a species of Elapidae (Hydrophiinae-sea snake). Microcephalophis gracilis is a synonym of the snake.
| Slender sea snake | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Suborder: | Serpentes |
| Family: | Elapidae |
| Genus: | Hydrophis |
| Species: | H. gracilis |
| Binomial name | |
| Hydrophis gracilis (Shaw, 1802) | |
| Synonyms | |
| |
Diagnostic characters
Head small, body long and slender anteriorly; scales on thickest part of body juxtaposed; 5-6 maxillary teeth behind fangs; 17-21 scale rows around neck, 30-36 around thickest part of body (increase from neck to midbody 18–24); ventrals divided by a longitudinal fissure; prefrontal in contact with third upper labial; ventrals 220–287.
Total length males 950 mm, females 1025 mm; tail length males 80 mm, females 95 mm.
Distribution
- Indian Ocean and Bay of Bengal (Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Myanmar and Sri Lanka).[1]
- South China Sea northward to the coast of Fujian (China)
- Persian Gulf (Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Oman, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Iran, Iraq and Kuwait)
- Coast of Malaysia through Indoaustralian Archipelago to New Guinea, New Caledonia, Australia (Queensland), Melanesia, Indonesia.[2]
- Thailand, Cambodia, Viet Nam, Philippines,[3] Singapore and Taiwan.[4]
References
- "WCH Clinical Toxinology Resources".
- "WCH Clinical Toxinology Resources".
- "WCH Clinical Toxinology Resources".
- Guinea, M. (15 February 2009). "IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: Hydrophis gracilis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
External links
- Microcephalophis gracilis on the Global Biodiversity Information Facility
- Microcephalphis gracilis at the Australian Faunal Directory
- http://itgmv1.fzk.de/www/itg/uetz/herp/photos/Microcephalophis_gracilis.jpg%5B%5D
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