Yellow-bellied sea snake

Yellow-bellied sea snake
Yellow-bellied sea snake
Scientific classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Elapidae
Genus: Hydrophis
Species:
H. platurus
Binomial name
Hydrophis platurus
(Linnaeus, 1766)
Yellow-bellied sea snake range
Synonyms
List
  • Anguis platura Linnaeus, 1766
  • Hydrus bicolor Schneider, 1799
  • Hydrophis platuraLatreille, 1801
  • Pelamis platurosDaudin, 1803
  • Pelamis bicolorDaudin, 1803
  • Hydrophis pelamis Schlegel, 1837
  • Pelamis ornata Gray, 1842
  • Pelamis platurusStoliczka, 1872
  • Hydrus platurusBoulenger, 1890
  • Pelamydrus platurusSchmidt & Davis, 1941
  • Pelamis platura – Böhme, 2003

The yellow-bellied sea snake (Hydrophis platurus) is a highly venomous species of snake from the subfamily Hydrophiinae (the sea snakes) found in tropical oceanic waters around the world except for the Atlantic Ocean. For many years, it was placed in the monotypic genus Pelamis, but recent molecular evidence indicates it lies within the genus Hydrophis.