Flattails
| Flattails | ||||||||||||
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Laticauda saintgironsi |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name of the subfamily | ||||||||||||
| Laticaudinae | ||||||||||||
| Cope , 1879 | ||||||||||||
| Scientific name of the genus | ||||||||||||
| Laticauda | ||||||||||||
| Laurenti , 1768 |
The flattails ( Laticauda ), also known as sea kraits , are a genus of poisonous snakes (Elapidae). They were first scientifically described in 1768 by the Austrian natural scientist Josephus Nicolaus Laurenti . The flattails are placed in the monotypical subfamily Laticaudinae , at times they were also in the subfamily of sea snakes (Hydrophinae).
features
The flattails are medium-sized snakes of slender shape with a cylindrical body, vertically flattened tail and usually a short head that is barely separated from the body. All species have a conspicuous pattern with black or dark brown bands on a lighter, mostly white to blue base color. In Laticauda crockeri is often Melanismus observed.
Way of life
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The species of this genus live mainly in water, but are relatively land-oriented. Therefore, the flattails are also referred to as amphibious sea snakes.
They go to the land to molt, take in fresh water and lay eggs. They feed on fish, especially eel-like fish that are paralyzed with a poison bite. Flattails are oviparous reptiles, the clutches can contain around 20 eggs and are deposited, for example, in crevices in the rock. There is still no complete agreement on the reproductive behavior of Laticauda crockeri .
Occurrence
The flattails are widespread in the coastal areas of Southeast Asia and are found in many West Pacific islands. Two species penetrate as far as the north coast of Australia . Laticauda crockeri is endemic in the Lake Te'Nggano to the Solomon Islands and shares this brackish lake with the Laticauda colubrina ( Laticauda colubrina ).
Toxicity
The flattails belong to the extremely poisonous species of snakes. However, they are generally very curious, but rather unaggressive, so that they rarely bite. The diver's hectic movements are often the reason for a bite. But aggressive behavior can also occur during the mating season. Like all sea snakes, the flattail only have relatively short poison fangs. Usually a thick wetsuit is enough to protect yourself from the bite.
The snake's poisons are life-threatening as they affect the nervous system and can lead to paralysis of the skeletal muscles and even breathing. The injection site usually shows no pain, local changes or symptoms. The effects in the body can occur a few minutes after the bite, depending on the dose of the poison, but usually not until half an hour to an hour later. Life-threatening reactions can also occur many hours after the bite.
ecology
The natural predators of the flattails include birds of prey such as sea eagles and ospreys as well as reef freons and tiger sharks . On some islands where mongooses were introduced, the flattails have been wiped out because they are easy prey for these mongooses.
species
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Eight species are currently assigned to the flattail genus:
- Laticauda colubrina or yellow lip Seeschlange ( Laticauda colubrina ( Schneider , 1799))
- Laticauda crockeri Slevin , 1934
- Laticauda frontalis De Vis , 1905
- Laticauda guineai Heatwole, Busack & Cogger , 2005
- Laticauda laticaudata ( Linnaeus , 1758)
- Laticauda saintgironsi Cogger, Heatwole , 2005
- Laticauda schistorhynchus ( Günther , 1874)
- Half-banded flattail ( Laticauda semifasciata ( Reinwardt , 1837))
swell
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Knowledge of poisonous snakes (adder flattail). (No longer available online.) Go: ruma, archived from the original on June 26, 2009 ; Retrieved October 16, 2009 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ Laticauda in The Reptile Database ; Retrieved January 22, 2011.
literature
- Mark O'Shea: Venomous snakes - All kinds of the world in their habitats , Kosmos-Verlag, 2006. ISBN 3-440-1061-95 .
- Chris Mattison: Encyclopedia of the Snakes , blv publisher. ISBN 978-3835403604 .
