Hydrophis [Leioselasma] spiralis (Shaw, 1802) Photo figure 101

Yellow Sea Snake

Hydrus spiralis Shaw, 1802:564, pl. 125.

Hydrophis spiralis, Smith, 1926:48 .— David and Ineich, 1999:118.— Leviton, Brown, and Siler, 2014:511, figs. 25A, 26C–D.

Leioselasma spiralis, Wallach, Williams, and Boundy, 2014:360 .

TYPE LOCALITY AND TYPE SPECIMEN (S).— Indian Ocean . Holotype: BMNH 1946.1.6.94 (formerly BMNH III.6.10.c) (see comment by Smith [1926:50], also Bauer [2015:57 [).

PHILIPPINE DISTRIBUTION (Map 19A [p. 130]).— Philippines (a single record, juvenile, from Mergusi [Smith {1926:50}] has been repeatedly cited without further evidence of presence in Philippine coastal waters; Wallach et al. [2014:360] include Tablas in their distribution list).

GENERAL DISTRIBUTION (OTHER THAN PHILIPPINES).— Widely distributed from the Persian/Arabian Gulf east to Malaysia and Indonesia (see David and Ineich [1999:118]; Wallach et al. [2014:360]).

REMARKS.— We have tentatively assigned this species to Hydrophis consistent with the treatments of Hydrophis and related nominal genera by Sanders et al. (2013) and Pyron et al.(2013).

CONSERVATION STATUS [IUCN].— Least Concern [2016] ver. 3.1.