Current Status of Marine Snakes from Jaffna Peninsula, Sri Lanka with Description of Hitherto Unrecorded Hydrophis fasciatus fasciatus (Schneider, 1799)
Abstract:
As only a few study reported on sea snakes of Sri Lanka,
a study was undertaken from June 2003 to November 2004 in the coast of
Jaffna Peninsula which lies in the Northern part of Sri Lanka. Out of
the 121 specimens examined, 9 species under 5 genera in two families were
documented in the coastal waters of both Valvettiturai to Point Pedro
and the Jaffna lagoon waters. This includes Hydrophis fasciatus fasciatus
which is no longer known in Sri Lanka increased the number of Hydrophisspecies to 8, thus the total number of sea snakes inhabiting the coastal
waters of Sri Lanka become 14 in Hydrophiidae. Of the sea snakes collected,
Lapemis curtus (33.88%) and Praescutata viperina (23.97%)
were the commonly recorded species. Least recorded species were H.
lapemoides, H. fasciatus fasciatus, Kerilia jerdonii jerdonii
and Acrochordus granulatus (0.83, 0.83, 2.47 and 2.47%, respectively).
S. Abyerami and K. Sivashanthini, 2008. Current Status of Marine Snakes from Jaffna Peninsula, Sri Lanka with Description of Hitherto Unrecorded Hydrophis fasciatus fasciatus (Schneider, 1799). International Journal of Zoological Research, 4: 214-224.
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