Distributed range & status
This snake is found in coastal areas of North, West, East, and North West of Sri Lanka. Mannar, Kalutara, Kumana, Moratuwa, Panama, Wallawaththa, Wasskaduwa, Rakawa, Puttlum, Godawaya, Negambo ect. They are common in the Indian Ocean (From the Persian Gulf, Iran, Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia, Philippines: Visayan Sea, Panay etc.) and the marine waters around Korea, Japan, Solomon Islands, South China sea (incl. Hainan), East China Sea (incl. Taiwan), Coastal regions of Shandong and Liaoning (China) Coasts of Persian Gulf (Oman, United Arab Emirates), east through South Asia until New Guinea
Scales
rostral |
slightly more broad than deep |
frontal |
longer than the nasal, it’s more long than broad, as long as its distance from the rostral or the tip of the snout |
supraoculars |
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parietals |
|
prefrontals |
Sharter than the nasal |
nasals |
shorter than the frontal, more than twice as long as the suture between the prefrontals. Touches one another. |
internasals |
absent |
loreals |
absent |
preoculars |
1 scale present. usually in contact with the second upper labial |
postoculars |
2 |
temporals |
1+2 two superposed anterior |
Supralabials |
7 or 8 (2 touches prefrontal, 3-4 or 3-5 touches the eye) in some these scales are divided |
mental |
|
infralabials |
Scales after the 2nd or 3rd are smaller. Cuneate scales are present |
sublinguals |
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coastals |
|
ventrals |
311-325, smooth or with two or more tubercles. Gets larger posterior. |
anal |
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subcaudals |
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These snakes have both pairs of chin-shields in contact or posterior separated by one scale. Sub-imbricate scales are keeled or with two or three tubercles, in 39-45 rows (27 33 anteriorly). Back of the neck bear 27-36 scale rows. Mid body scale rows 37-49.
Characteristics
This is a moderate sized snake. Head is small; almost indistinct from neck. The eye is shorter than its distance from the mouth in the adult. The body is long. The body is thickening towards the posterior. Anterior part of the body is cylindrical & posterior body is laterally flattened. The body is thin towards the anterior. They have a flattened paddle like tail. Hemipenis is divided closer to the end & lack spines. Rest of the part has spines.
Colour
Colour & pattern may vary. Dorsal body is greenish-olive or yellow, with 50-75 blackish or olive transverse bars or annuli, broadest on the back, sometimes connected by a black band along the ventrally; or yellowish, with a black vertebral band and a few black bars on the neck. The head is olive or yellow with a horse shoe shaped mark. The tail end is black.
Venom
They are highly venomous snakes but a death has never been recorded from Sri Lanka.
Dentition
Data not found.
Behavior
It is a very aggressive snake.
Breeding
This is an ovoviviparous snake. 3-16 offspring are produced one at a time in the ocean.
Growth
Off spring are 350-380mm long & grows up to 1200-1700mm. Length of head and body 1360 mm.; tail 140 mm
Food
This snake feeds on fishes, eels & marine invertibrates.
Identification
In some, the supralabials are divided. Also the head is olive colour. The other sea snakes do not bear an olive colour head.
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