| Emydocephalus | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Emydocephalus ijimae | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Suborder: | Serpentes |
| Family: | Elapidae |
| Subfamily: | Hydrophiinae |
| Genus: | Emydocephalus Krefft, 1869 [1] |
| Species | |
|
Three recognized species, see article. | |
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 (Hydrophiinae: Hydrophiini) with Aipysurus. Unlike most sea snakes, all species of Emydocephalus, have an absence of teeth on their dentary and palatine bones, and 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.[2] This reduced dentition is due to their diet consisting almost entirely of fish eggs.
Etymology
The generic name, Emydocephalus, is from the Greek words ὲμύς (emys) meaning "turtle", and κεφαλή (kephale) meaning "head".[3]
Geographic range
Species of the genus Emydocephalus are found in East Asia, Southeast Asia, and Australasia.[4]
Species
Emydocephalus has three recognized species.
- Emydocephalus annulatus Krefft, 1869 - turtle-headed sea snake, egg-eating sea snake
- Emydocephalus ijimae Stejneger, 1898 - turtlehead sea snake
- Emydocephalus orarius Nankivell, Goiran, Hourston, Shine, Rasmussen, Thomson, & Sanders, 2020[5]
References
- ↑ "Emydocephalus ". ITIS (Integrated Taxonomic Information System). www.itis.gov.
- ↑ Voris K., Harold (1966). "Fish Eggs as the Apparent Sole Food Item for a Genus of Sea Snake, Emydocephalus (Krefft)". The Ecological Society of America. 47 (1): 152–154. doi:10.2307/1935755. JSTOR 1935755 – via Wiley.
- ↑ Stejneger L (1907). Herpetology of Japan and Adjacent Territory. United States National Museum Bulletin 58. Washington, District of Columbia: Smithsonian Institution. xx + 577 pp. (Genus Emydocephalus, p. 413).
- ↑ Genus Emydocephalus at The Reptile Database
- ↑ Nankivell, James H.; Goiran, Claire; Hourston, Mathew; Shine, Richard; Rasmussen, Arne R.; Thomson, Vicki A.; Sanders, Kate L. (2020-03-27). "A new species of turtle-headed sea Snake ( Emydocephalus : Elapidae) endemic to Western Australia". Zootaxa. 4758 (1): 141–156. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.4758.1.6. ISSN 1175-5334. PMID 32230158. S2CID 214750958.
Further reading
- Goin CJ, Goin OB, Zug GR (1978). Introduction to Herpetology, Third Edition. San Francisco: W.H. Freeman. xi + 378 pp. ISBN 0-7167-0020-4. (Genus Emydocephalus, p. 332).
- Krefft G (1869). The Snakes of Australia; An Illustrated and Descriptive Catalogue of All the Known Species. Sydney: Thomas Richards, Government Printer. xxv + 100 pp. + Plates I–XII. (Emydocephalus, new genus, p. 92).