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Type: Article
Published: 2022-08-01
Page range: 301-321
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Redescriptions of the type specimens of synonymous nominal taxa of sea snakes (Serpentes: Elapidae: Hydrophis, Laticauda) at the Zoological Survey of India

Zoological Survey of India, Herpetology Division, FPS Building, Indian Museum Complex, Kolkata, West Bengal, India.
Chennai Snake Park, Raj Bhavan Post, Chennai 600 022, Tamil Nadu, India.
Zoological Survey of India, Herpetology Division, FPS Building, Indian Museum Complex, Kolkata, West Bengal, India.
Zoological Survey of India, Herpetology Division, FPS Building, Indian Museum Complex, Kolkata, West Bengal, India.
Zoological Survey of India, Herpetology Division, FPS Building, Indian Museum Complex, Kolkata, West Bengal, India.
Zoological Survey of India, Herpetology Division, FPS Building, Indian Museum Complex, Kolkata, West Bengal, India.
Reptilia Holotype Hydrophis Laticauda synonym syntype taxonomy

Abstract

We redescribe and illustrate the type specimens of ten taxa of sea snakes of the genera Hydrophis Latreille in Sonnini & Latreille, 1801 and Laticauda Laurenti, 1768 in the collections of the Zoological Survey of India. The specimens comprise holotypes and syntypes of  ten synonymous nominal taxa that represent seven valid nominal taxa. We here clarify that one specimen ZSI 8278 is a syntype of Hydrophis dayanus Stoliczka, 1872, not holotype as previously stated. In one case, four holotypes of four nominal taxa are synonyms of the same taxon—Hydrophis cyanocinctus Daudin, 1803. Many of these type specimens are herein first depicted in photographs in a publication.

 

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