What is the Yellow-bellied Sea Snake?

About Yellow-bellied Sea Snake:

 

• The Yellow-bellied Sea Snake is a highly venomous species of snake that belongs to the subfamily Hydrophiinae (the sea snakes).
• Scientific Name: Pelamis platurus
• Distribution:
  • This snake is considered the most widely-distributed snake in the world.
  • It is found in tropical and subtropical waters around the world.
  • It is found in tropical ocean waters in the Indian and Pacific Oceans, including the coasts of Africa, Asia, Australia, Mexico, including Baja California, and Central America.
• Features:
  • Adult length averages 3 feet (0.9 meter). The snake has smooth scales and a sleekly shaped body.
  • It has a distinctive bicolor pattern with a yellow underbelly and brown back with a flattened yellow tail with large black spots.
  • It is a diurnal sea snake and primarily aquatic, living its entire life cycle at sea. 
  • This snake can spend up to 3 hours underwater without surfacing.
  • Adaptations to aquatic life include the reduced ventral scale size, laterally compressed body and paddle-tail for swimming, valved nostrils and palatine seal for excluding seawater, and cutaneous gas exchange for prolonging dive times. 
  • This species can uptake up to 33% of its oxygen requirements through the skin while diving and swimming at the surface of the water.
  • They are carnivores (piscivores) and eat only fish.
• Conservation Status:
  • IUCN Red List: Least Concern

 

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Q1) What are Piscivores animals?

Piscivores are a group of animals that primarily feed on fish as their primary food source. They are specialized predators with adaptations that allow them to catch and consume fish efficiently. Piscivory is a common feeding strategy observed in various animal species across different habitats, including aquatic and terrestrial environments.

Source: ‘Most poisonous’ yellow-bellied snake found in Bay of Bengal; experts say snake bite can paralyse humans