- Aipysurus duboisii
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Aipysurus duboisii Scientific classification Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Subphylum: Vertebrata Class: Reptilia Order: Squamata Suborder: Serpentes Family: Elapidae Genus: Aipysurus Species: A. duboisii Binomial name Aipysurus duboisii
(Bava, 1869)[1]Aipysurus duboisii or Dubois' seasnake is a species of sea snake. Their habitat includes Papua New Guinea, New Caledonia and the northern, eastern and western coastal areas of Australia, that is the Coral Sea, Arafura Sea, Timor Sea and Indian Ocean.[2] They live at depths up to 80 meters in coral reef flats, sandy and silty sediments which contain seaweed, invertebrates and corals or sponges that can serve as shelter. These snakes feed on moray eels and various fish that live on the seafloor, up to 7 cm in size. They are viviparous, giving birth to live young rather than laying eggs.[3][4] They have medium aggressiveness, i.e. will bite if provoked, but not spontaneously.[5] The fangs are 1.8 mm long, which are relatively short for a snake, and the venom yield is 0.43 mg.[6] Aipysurus duboisii is a crepuscular species, meaning that they are most active at dawn and dusk.[7]
Contents
Description
Adults grow up to 148 cm in length but usually to around 80 cm. Their head is slightly wider than their body with nostrils on its upper part and nasals contacting each other. Eyes are separated from supralabial scales by a row of large subocular scales. Dorsal scales are usually smooth, but sometimes have a small keel or small knobs. Individuals vary significantly in color and its body patterns. The tail is relatively long; the chin and throat have lighter color than rest of the body.[3]
Toxicity
The acute toxicity of snake venom is conventionally tested on laboratory animals and is evaluated in terms of the median lethal dose (LD50), that is, the dose required to kill half the members of a tested population divided by the weight of the tested animal. The LD50 depends on the animal. Rabbits are about twice as sensitive to sea snake venom as mice, and fish and frogs are even more susceptible. The LD50 for subcutaneous injection of A. duboisii venom into mice is 0.044 mg/kg of body weight. This makes A. duboisii the most poisonous sea snake, and the third most poisonous snake after the Inland Taipan (Oxyuranus microlepidotus, LD50=0.025 mg/kg) and the Eastern Brown Snake (Pseudonaja textilis, LD50=0.0365 mg/kg).[8][9][6]
See also
References
- ^ "Aipysurus". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. http://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=700201. Retrieved 20 September 2007.
- ^ Aipysurus duboisii — Dubois' Seasnake, Australian Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities
- ^ a b Aipysurus duboisii Bavay, 1869, SeaLifeBase site: UBC - Canada
- ^ Heatwole, p. 22
- ^ Heatwole, p. 121
- ^ a b Heatwole, p. 115
- ^ Heatwole, p. 40
- ^ Steve Backshall Steve Backshall's venom: poisonous animals in the natural world, New Holland Publishers, 2007, ISBN 1845377346 p. 155
- ^ P. Gopalakrishnakone Sea snake toxinology, NUS Press, 1994, ISBN 9971691930 p. 98
Bibliography
- Heatwole, Harold Sea Snakes, UNSW Press, 1999, ISBN 0868407763
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