Thai National Parks

Species of Thailand

Striped sea snake

Hydrophis fasciatus

(Johann Gottlob Theaenus Schneider, 1799)

In Thai: งูแสมรังหัวดำ, ngu saem rang hua damm

Hydrophis fasciatus, commonly known as the striped sea snake, is a species of venomous sea snake in the family Elapidae (Hydrophiinae).

Description

Hydrophis fasciatus has a small head, long body and is slender anteriorly. The scales on thickest part of body are subquadrangular or hexagonal in shape, juxtaposed or slightly imbricate. It has 5-6 maxillary (upper jaw bone) teeth behind fangs and 2 anterior temporals.

Body scales in 28-33 rows around the neck, 47-58 around midbody (increase in number of rows from neck to midbody 20–27); ventral scales 414-514 (average 460).

Anterior part of body including head and neck dark olive to black with pale oval yellowish spots on sides, sometimes connected as crossbars; posterior, grayish; below whitish; dark rhomboidal spots may extend down the sides of the body and form complete annuli in young.

Total length males 1100 mm, females 990 mm; tail length males 100 mm, females 75 mm.

Distribution

  • Indian Ocean (coasts of Bangladesh, Pakistan, India, Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia).
  • Coasts of Indonesia (Sumatra, Java, Borneo).
  • Coasts of Australia, Philippines, New Guinea.
  • Coasts of Guangxi, Guangdong, Hainan, Fujian (China).

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Scientific classification

Kingdom
Animalia
Phylum
Chordata
Subphylum
Vertebrata
Class
Reptilia
Order
Squamata
Suborder
Serpentes
Family
Elapidae
Genus
Hydrophis
Species
Hydrophis fasciatus

Common names

  • English: Striped sea snake
  • Thai: งูแสมรังหัวดำ, ngu saem rang hua damm

Synonyms

  • Hydrophis fasciatus, WANG et al. (2022)
  • Hydrophis fasciatus, Van Stanley Bartholomew Wallach et al. (2014)
  • Hydrophis fasciatus, Nguyen Van Sang et al. (2009)
  • Hydrophis (Hydrophis) fasciatus, Vladimir Emelyanovich Kharin (2004)
  • Hydrophis fasciatus, John C. Murphy & Merel J. Cox & Harold K. Voris (1999)
  • Hydrophis fasciatus, Merel J. Cox et al. (1998)
  • Hydrophis fasciatus, Malcolm Arthur Smith (1943)
  • Micromastophis fasciatus, Prater (1924)
  • Aturia fasciata, Frank Wall (1921)
  • Disteira fasciata, Leonhard Hess Stejneger (1907)

Conservation status

Least Concern (IUCN3.1)

Least Concern (IUCN3.1)

Photos

No photo for this species yet

Range Map

Distribution map of Striped sea snake, Hydrophis fasciatus in Thailand
  • Narathiwat Coast
  • Pattani Coast
  • Phuket Coast
  • Satun Coast
  • Surat Thani Coast
Range map of Hydrophis fasciatus in Thailand