Abstract
Sea snakes (Elapidae, subfamilies Hydrophiinae and Laticaudinae) reach a very high species richness in Southeast Asia, but most countries in the region still lack comprehensive and up-to-date identification tools for these snakes. We present an updated checklist of sea snakes in Vietnam. We also provide diagnostic characters for all species and a new complete identification key, chiefly based on easy-to-use external characters. The checklist and key cover the 25 species documented from Vietnam, as well as three likely future additions to its sea snake fauna. By surveying incoming fishing vessels between Nha Trang and the mouth of Mekong River in 2000–2001, we were able to document two species new for Vietnamese waters: Hydrophis belcheri and H. pachycercos. Through these surveys we also secured four specimens of the rare endemic species H. parviceps, formerly known only from two specimens. A comprehensive bibliography of the literature treating sea snakes in Vietnamese waters is provided.Identification key: bibliography, biodiversity, diagnostic characters, Vietnamese watersReferences
Alcala, A.C., Maypa, J.P. & Russ, G.R. (2000) Distribution of the Turtle-headed sea snakes Emydocephalus n. sp. on coral reefs of the central Philippines. UPV Journal for Natural Sciences, 5, 27–32.
Bain, R.H. & Truong, N.Q. (2004) Herpetofaunal diversity of Ha Giang Province in northeastern Vietnam, with descriptions of two new species. American Museum Novitates, 3453, 1–42.
Barme, M. (1958) Contribution à l'étude des serpents marins venimeux hydrophiidae du Viet Nam. Bulletin de la Société de Pathologie exotique, 51, 258–265.
Barme, M. (1963) Venomous sea snakes of Viet-Nam and their venoms. In: Keegan, H.L. & MacFarlane, W.V. (Eds.) Venomous and poisonous animals and noxious plants of the Pacific region. Pergamon Press, Oxford, pp. 373–378.
Barme, M. (1964) Les serpents marins venimeux du Viet-Nam et leurs venins. Cahiers du Pacifique, 6, 192.
Barme, M. (1968) Venomous sea snakes (Hydrophiidae). In: Bucherl, W., Buckley, E.E. & Deulofeu, V. (Eds.) Venemous Animals and Their Venoms. Academic Press, New York, pp. 285–308.
Beck, J., Kitching, I.J. & Haxaire, J. (2007) The latitudinal distribution of sphingid species richness in continental Southeast Asia: What causes the biodiversity "hot spot" in northern Thailand? Raffles Bulletin of Zoology, 55, 179–185.
Bourret, R. (1934) Les serpents marine de l'Indochine Francaise. Institut Océanographique de l'Indochine, Hanoi, Note 25, 1–69.
Bourret, R. (1936) Les serpents de l'Indochine. Catalogue systématique descriptif, ll, 338–381.
Cogger, H.G., Cameron, E.E. & Cogger, H.M. (1983) Hydrophiidae. In: Zoological catalogue of Australia. Amphibia and Reptilia. Government Publishing Service, Canberra: Australia, pp. 241–256.
Cogger, H.G. & Heatwole, H. (2006) Laticauda frontalis (de Vis, 1905) and Laticauda saintgironsi n. sp. from Vanuatu and New Caledonia (Serpentes: Elapidae: Laticaudinae)—A new lineage of sea kraits? Records of the Australian Museum, 58, 245–256.
Das, I. (1993) Annandales seasnakes, Kolpophis annandalei (Laidlaw, 1901) – A new record for Borneo (Reptilia, Serpentes, Hydrophiidae) Raffles Bulletin of Zoology, 41, 359–361.
David, P. & Ineich, I. (1999) Les Serpents venimeux du monde: systématique et répartition. Dumerilia(Paris), 3, 3–499.
Dotsenko, I.B. (1999) Snakes from Vietnam at the National Museum of Natural History of Ukrainian National Academy of Sciences stock collection. Communication 1. The sea snakes - Hydrophiidae. Vestnik zoologii, 33, 39–51.
Dowling, H.G. (1966) Poisonous snakes of Vietnam. Animal Kingdom, 69, 34–43.
Gasperetti, J. (1988) Sea snakes. In: Büttiker, W. & Krupp, F. (Eds.) Fauna of Saudi Arabia. NCWCD Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Riyadh, pp. 169–450.
Giao, P.M., Tuoc, D., Dung, V.V., Wikramanayake, E.D., Amato, G., Arctander, P. & MacKinnon, J.R. (1998) Description of Muntiacus truongsonensis, a new species of muntjac (Artiodactyla: Muntiacidae) from Central Vietnam, and implications for conservation. Animal Conservation, 1, 61–68.
Golay, P., Smith, H.M., Broadley, D.G., Dixon, J.R., McCarthy, C., Rage, J.C., Schätti, B. & Toriba, M. (1993) Endoglyphs and other major venomous snakes of the world. A checklist. Herpetological Data Centre, Azemiops, Switzerland,pp.
Gritis, P.A. & Voris, H.K. (1990) Variability and significance of parietal and ventral scales in the marine snakes of the genus Lapemis (Serpentes: Hydrophiidae), with comments on the occurrence of spiny scales in the genus. Fieldiana Zoology, 56, 1–13.
Harding, K.A. & Welch, K.R.G. (1980) Venomous snakes of the world. A checklist. Pergamon Press, Oxford, 1–188 pp.
Heatwole, H., Busack, S. & Cogger, H.G. (2005) Geographic variation in sea kraits of the Laticauda colubrina complex (Serpentes: Elapidae: Hydrophiinae: Laticaudini). Herpetological Monographs, 19, 1–136.
Hecht, M.K., Kropach, C. & Hecht, B.M. (1974) Distribution of the Yellow-Bellied Sea Snake, Pelamis platurus, and Its Significance in Relation to the Fossil Record. Herpetologica, 30, 387–396.
Ineich, I. (1988) Le serpent marin Pelamis platurus (Elapidae, Hydrophiinae) : bilan des connaissances sur sa biologie et sa distribution ; situation en Polynésie orientale. L'Année Biologique, 4ème série, 27, 93–117.
Ineich, I. (1996) Geographic distribution. Hydrophis torquatus diadema. Herpetological Review, 27, 154.
Ineich, I. & Rasmussen, A.R. (1997) Sea snakes from New Caledonia and the Loyalty Islands (Elapidae, Laticaudinae and Hydrophiinae). Zoosystema, 19, 185–192.
Iskandar, D.T. & Colijn, E. (2001) A checklist of Southeast Asian and New Guinean reptiles, part 1. Serpentes. Biodiversity Conservation Project. Indonesian Institute of sciences, Japan International Cooperation Agency, The Ministry of Forestry & The Gibbon Foundation and Institute of Technology, Bandung, Java, Indonesia, -pp 1-195
Kharin, V.E. (1984a) A review of sea snakes of the group Hydrophis sensu lato (Serpentes, Hydrophiidae). 3. the genus Leioselasma. Zoologicheskii Zhurnal, 63, 1535–1546.
Kharin, V.E. (1984b) Three species of sea snakes first discovered in Vietnamese waters with a comment on a rare form Praescutata viperina. Biologiya Morya. Vladivostok, 2, 26–30.
Kharin, V.E. (2004a) On the Taxonomic Position of the Sea Snake Hydrophis caerulescens (Shaw, 1802) (Serpentes: Hydrophiidae). Russian Journal of Marine Biology, 30, 196–198.
Kharin, V.E. (2004b) Review of sea snakes of the genus Hydrophis sensu stricto (Serpentes: Hydrophiidae). Russian Journal of Marine Biology, 30, 387–394.
Kharin, V.E. (2006) An annotated checklist of sea snakes of Vietnam, with notes on a new record of the yellow-lipped sea krait, Laticauda colubrina (Schneider, 1799)(Laticaudidae, Hydrophiidae). Russian Journal of Marine Biology, 32, 223–228.
Kharin, V.E. (2007) On the second record of yellow-bellied sea snake Pelamis platurus (Linnaeus, 1766) from Russia. Russian Journal of Herpetology, 14 (1), 45-49.
Kharin, V.E. (2009) Redescription of a Russian finding of the Erabu Sea Krait Pseudolaticauda semifasciata (Reinwardt in Schlegel, 1837), with remarks about species composition of sea snakes (Serpentes: Laticaudidae, Hydrophiidae) in Russian and adjacent waters. Russian Journal of Marine Biology, 35, 8–14.
McCarthy, C.J. (1986) Relationships of the laticaudine sea snakes (Serpentes: Elapidae: Laticaudinae). Bulletin of the British Museum of Natural History (Zoology), 50, 127–161.
McCarthy, C.J. (1987) Adaptations of sea snakes that eat fish eggs; with a note on the throat musculature of Aipysurus eydouxii (Gray, 1849). Journal of Natural History, 21, 1119–1128.
McCarthy, C.J. & Warrell, D. (1991) A collection of sea snakes from Thailand with new records of Hydrophis belcheri (Gray). Bulletin of the Natural History Museum (zoology), London, 57, 161–166.
Minton, S.A. (1975) Geographic distribution of sea snakes. In: Dunson, W.A. (Ed.) The Biology of Sea Snakes. London & tokyo Baltimore, pp. 21–31.
Murphy, J.C., Cox, M.J. & Voris, H.K. (1999) A Key to the Sea Snakes in the Gulf of Thailand. Natural History Bulletin of the Siam Society, 47, 95–108.
Nguyên, V.S. & Hó, T.C. (1996) Danh luc bó sát vá éch Nhái Viét Nam Science & Technology Publ. House, Hanoi, -Pp. 1-264
Nguyên, V.S., Hó, T.C. & Nguyên, Q.T. (2009) Herpetofauna of Vietnam. Edition Chimaira, Frankfurt am Main, 768 pp.
Nguyên, V.S., Hó, T.C. & Nguyên, Q.T. (2005) A checklist of Amphibians and Reptiles of Vietnam. Nhá Xuát Bán Nóng Nghiép, Hanoi, 1–180 pp.
Pickwell, G.V. (1972) Sea snakes of Viet Nam and Southeast Asia. Handbook of dangerous animals for field personnel. Undersea surveillance and ocean sciences department, Naval undersea center, San Diego, 5–25 pp.
Rasmussen, A.R. (1989) An analysis of Hydrophis ornatus (Gray), H. lamberti Smith, and H. inornatus (Gray) (Hydrophiidae, Serpentes) based on samples from various localities, with remarks on feeding and breeding biology of H. ornatus. Amphibia-Reptilia, 10, 397–417.
Rasmussen, A.R. (1997) Systematics of sea snakes: A critical review. Symposium of the Zoological Society of London, 70, 15–30.
Rasmussen, A.R. & Andersen, M. (1990) The sea snake Kerilia jerdoni Gray (1849): First records from Andaman Sea, Phuket Island, Thailand, with remarks on the two subspecies. Snake, 22, 131–133.
Rasmussen, A.R., Auliya, M. & Böhme, W. (2001) A New Species of the Sea Snake Genus Hydrophis (Serpentes: Elapidae) from a River in West Kalimantan (Indonesia, Borneo). Herpetologica, 57, 23–32.
Rasmussen, A.R., Gravlund, P., van Nguyên, C. & Chanhome, L. (2007) A resurrection of Hydrophis pachycercos Fischer 1855 (Serpentes: Elapidae) with a new neotype from Vietnamese waters. Hamadryad, 31, 288–298.
Rasmussen, A.R. & Ineich, I. (2000) Sea snakes of New Caledonia and surrounding waters (Serpentes: Elapidae): first report on the occurrence of Lapemis curtus and description of a new species from the genus Hydrophis. Hamadryad, 25, 91–99.
Rasmussen, A.R. & Ineich, I. (2010) Species diversity in the genus Emydocephalus Krefft, 1869 (Serpentes, Elapidae, Hydrophiinae): Insight from morphology and anatomy Herpetological Review, 41, 285–290.
Saint Girons, H. (1972) Les serpents du Cambodge. Mémoires du Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle (France), Ser. A 74, 1–165.
Shuntov, V.P. (1962) Sea snakes (Hydrophiidae) of the Gulf of Tonkin (Northern Viet-Nam). Zoologicheskii Zhurnal, 41, 1203–1209.
Shuntov, V.P. (1966) On the distribution of sea snakes in the South China Sea and the Eastern Indian Ocean. Zoologicheskii Zhurnal, 45, 1882–1886.
Smith, M.A. (1920) On sea snakes from the coasts of the Malay Peninsula, Siam and Cochin-China. Journal of the Federated Malay States Museums. Kuala Lumpur, 10, 1–63.
Smith, M.A. (1926) Monograph of the sea-snakes (Hydrophiidae). Printed by order of the Trustees of the British museum (Natural History) London, Pages i-xvii + 1-130 + 2 plates.
Smith, M.A. (1935) The sea snakes (Hydrophiidae). Dana-Report, 8, 1–6.
Taylor, E.H. (1963) New and Rare Oriental Serpents. Copeia, 1963, 429–433.
Thomas, R.A. (1976) Dorsal scale row formulae in snakes. Copeia, 1976, 837–841.
Tran, K. & Nguyên, Q.T. (1980) Các loái ran dóc Viét Nam. Science & Technology Publ. House, Hanoi,pp.
Tran, K. & Nguyên, Q.T. (1995) Các loái ran dóc Viét Nam Science & Technology Publ. House, Hanoi, 1–204 pp.
Tu, A.T. (1974) Sea snake investigation in the Gulf of Thailand. Journal of Herpetology, 8, 201–210.
Warrell, D.A. (1994) Sea snake bites in the Asia-Pacific region. In: Gopalakrishnakone, P. (Ed.) Sea snake toxinology. Singapore University Press, Singapore, pp. 1–36.
Welch, K.R.G. (1988) Snakes of the Orient: a checklist. Robert E. Krieger Publ. Co., Malabar, Pages i-vii + 1-183.
Zhao, E. & Adler, K. (1993) Herpetology of China. Society for the study of Amphibians and Reptiles. Oxford, Ohio,pp.
Ziegler, T., Hendrix, R., Thanh, V.N., Vogt, M., Forster, B. & Kien, D.N. (2007) The diversity of a snake community in a karst forest ecosystem in the central Truong Son, Vietnam, with an identification key. Zootaxa, 1493, 1–40.