Emydocephalus ijimae | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Reptilia |
Order: | Squamata |
Suborder: | Serpentes |
Family: | Elapidae |
Genus: | Emydocephalus |
Species: | E. ijimae |
Binomial name | |
Emydocephalus ijimae Stejneger, 1898 | |
Emydocephalus ijimae, also called commonly Ijima's sea snake and the turtlehead sea snake, is a species of venomous snake in the family Elapidae. [1] [2] The species occurs in East Asia, in the shallow coastal waters of the Northwest Pacific Ocean. [1] E. ijimae feeds exclusively on the eggs of coral reef fishes, which makes it an important predator for maintaining a healthy coral reef ecosystem. [3]
The specific name, ijimae, is in honor of Japanese zoologist Isao Ijima (1861–1921). [4]
E. ijimae is found off the coasts of China, Japan (including the Ryukyu Islands), and Taiwan. [1] [2]
E. ijimae exhibits sexual size dimorphism with males reaching a snout-to-vent length (SVL) typically less than 75 cm (30 in) and females sometimes exceeding 80 cm (31 in). Females also have a larger body weight (BW) of 170–600 g (6.0–21.2 oz) compared to the males which weigh 70–350 g (2.5–12.3 oz). The female BW also experiences greater fluctuations than the male BW. Adult males typically see an increase in BW from early spring to late summer and females occasionally undergo a rapid BW decrease from late autumn to early spring followed by a steady weight regain. [3]
SVL in newborn E. ilijmae is 266–342 mm (10.5–13.5 in). Neonate males have been reported to grow 0.27 mm/day while neonate females grow 0.36 mm/day. The snakes reach maturity around the same age: Between 19 and 28 months for males and between 19 and 26 months for females. [3]
E. ijimae is viviparous. [2] Neonates begin reproductive activity in the second or third summer and third spring after birth. Studies have suggested that E. ijimae is an income breeder that relies on temporal energy intake to produce offspring. [3]
The milk snake or milksnake, is a species of kingsnake; 24 subspecies are currently recognized. Lampropeltis elapsoides, the scarlet kingsnake, was formerly classified as a 25th subspecies, but is now recognized as a distinct species. The subspecies have strikingly different appearances, and many of them have their own common names. Some authorities suggest that this species could be split into several separate species. They are not venomous to humans.
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The yellow-lipped sea krait, also known as the banded sea krait or colubrine sea krait, is a species of venomous sea snake found in tropical Indo-Pacific oceanic waters. The snake has distinctive black stripes and a yellow snout, with a paddle-like tail for use in swimming.
Gorgasia preclara, the splendid garden eel or orange-barred garden eel, is a species of marine garden eel.
The tiger rattlesnake is a highly venomous pit viper species found in the southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico. No subspecies are currently recognized. The specific name tigris,, refers to the many narrow dorsal crossbands, which create a pattern of vertical stripes when viewed from the side.
The black-banded sea krait, also known commonly as the Chinese sea snake, is a largely amphibious species of venomous marine reptile in the subfamily Laticaudinae, family Elapidae. It is found in much of the western Pacific Ocean and some of the Sea of Japan. In Japan, it is known as erabu umi hebi ; in Okinawa, it is known simply as irabu.
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Aipysurus duboisii, also known commonly as Dubois' sea snake and the reef shallows sea snake, is a species of extremely venomous snake in the subfamily Hydrophiinae of the family Elapidae. Its geographic range includes Papua New Guinea, New Caledonia and the northern, eastern and western coastal areas of Australia, that is the Coral Sea, Arafura Sea, Timor Sea and Indian Ocean. It lives at depths up to 80 meters in coral reef flats, sandy and silty sediments which contain seaweed, invertebrates and corals or sponges that can serve as shelter. It preys upon moray eels and various fish that live on the seafloor, up to 110 cm in size. A. duboisii is viviparous, giving birth to live young rather than laying eggs. It displays medium aggressiveness, i.e., will bite if provoked, but not spontaneously. The fangs are 1.8 mm long, which are relatively short for a snake, and the venom yield is 0.43 mg. Aipysurus duboisii is a crepuscular species, meaning that it is most active at dawn and dusk.
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Emydocephalus is a genus of sea snakes, also known as turtle-headed sea snakes, in the family Elapidae. The genus is one of a small group of the viviparous sea snakes with Aipysurus. Unlike most sea snakes, the species that make up Emydocephalus lack teeth on their dentary and palatine bones. They also lack venom, making them the only non-venomous elapids. The dentary and palantine bones bear only a row of papillae. Emydocephalus does, however, bear fangs and many small pterygoid teeth. This reduced dentition is due to their diet consisting almost entirely of fish eggs. Due to their prey being small and immobile, they exhibit a foraging strategy different than most snakes, where they forage more frequently but consume smaller quantities.
Emydocephalus annulatus, commonly known as the turtleheaded sea snake or egg-eating sea snake, is a species of sea snake that can be found in waters of Oceania near Australia and some Pacific Islands such as the Philippines and the Loyalty Islands of New Caledonia. The geographic range is sporadic, for example, with populations distributed near the eastern and western coasts of Australia in the Great Barrier Reef and the Timor Sea reefs, respectively. They do not, however, occur in the Gulf of Carpentaria along the north coast.
Turbinaria stellulata, also known as disc coral, is a species of colonial stony coral in the family Dendrophylliidae. It is native to the Indo-Pacific region. The International Union for Conservation of Nature has rated its conservation status as being "vulnerable".