Northern mangrove seasnake

Northern mangrove seasnake
Conservation status
Data Deficient  (IUCN 3.1) [1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Suborder:	Serpentes
Family:	Elapidae
Genus:	Parahydrophis
Species:	P. mertoni
Binomial name
Parahydrophis mertoni (Roux, 1910)
Synonyms [2]
Distira mertoni Roux, 1910 Hydrophis mertoni — de Rooij, 1917 Parahydrophis mertoni — Burger & Natsuno, 1974

The northern mangrove seasnake (Parahydrophis mertoni), also known commonly as the Arafura smooth seasnake and Merton's sea snake, is a species of venomous snake in the family Elapidae. The species is native to Australia and New Guinea.

Taxonomy

The species was first described in 1910 as Distira mertoni by Jean Roux. ^{[3] [4]} It was transferred to the genus, Parahydrophis , in 1974 by Burger and Natsuno.

Etymology

The specific name, mertoni, is in honor of German zoologist Hugo Merton. ^[5]

Geographic range

Parahydrophis mertoni is found in Northern Australia ^[3] in Northern Territory and Queensland. It is also found in New Guinea in the Arafura Sea. ^[2] It is found in the inter-tidal zone. ^[1]

Description

Parahydrophis mertoni is blackish-olive with about 46 yellow rings on the body and ten on the tail. The head shields are spotted with yellow, except for the rostral and labials which are black. ^[6]

The holotype, which Roux called junge (young), has a total length (tail included) of 38 cm (15 in). ^[4] According to Wilson and Swan 2023, adults usually have a total length of about 50 cm (20 in).

Reproduction

Parahydrophis mertoni is viviparous. ^[2]

References

1. Guinea M, Lukoschek V, Milton D, Courtney T (2010). "Parahydrophis mertoni ". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2010 e.T176772A7301678. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2010-4.RLTS.T176772A7301678.en . Retrieved 9 December 2017.
2. Species Parahydrophis mertoni at The Reptile Database . www.reptile-database.org.
3. Australian Biological Resources Study (26 August 2013). "Species Parahydrophis mertoni (Roux, 1910)". Australian Faunal Directory. Canberra, Australian Capital Territory: Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts, Australian Government. Retrieved 6 October 2017.
4. J Roux (1 January 1910). "Reptilien und Amphibien der Aru- und Kei-Inseln". Abhandlungen der Senckenbergischen Naturforschenden Gesellschaft (in German). 33: 1–36. ISSN   0365-7000. Wikidata   Q95717201.
5. Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN   978-1-4214-0135-5. (Parahydrophis mertoni, p. 177).
6. de Rooij N (1917). The Reptiles of the Indo-Australian Archipelago. II. Ophidia. Leiden: E.J. Brill. xiv + 334 pp., 117 Figures. (Hydrophis mertoni, new combination, p. 233).

Further reading

• Cogger HG (2014). Reptiles and Amphibians of Australia, Seventh Edition. Clayton, Victoria, Australia: CSIRO Publishing. xxx + 1,033 pp. ISBN   978-0643100350.
• Roux J (1910). "Reptilien und Amphibien der Aru- und Kei-Inseln ". Abhandlungen der Senckenbergischen Naturforschenden Gesellschaft33: 211–247. (Distira mertoni, new species, p. 222 + Plate 13, figures 4 & 4a). (in German).
• Wilson, Steve; Swan, Gerry (2013). A Complete Guide to Reptiles of Australia, Fourth Edition. Sydney: New Holland Publishers. 522 pp. ISBN   978-1921517280.
• Wilson, S.; Swan, G. (2023). A Complete Guide to Reptiles of Australia, Sixth Edition. Sydney: Reed New Holland Publishers. ISBN   978-1-92554-671-2. 688 pp. (Parahydrophis mertoni, pp. 660–661).