Aipysurus eydouxii
Encyclopedia
Spine-tailed Seasnake Aipysurus eydouxii is a species of sea snake.
This species is found in Western Australia
, Northern Territory
, Queensland
, the South China Sea
,
the Gulf of Thailand
, Indonesia
, Peninsular Malaysia
, Vietnam
, and New Guinea
.
This snake is unusual amongst sea snakes in that it feeds exclusively on fish eggs.Due to this ecological change, this species has lost its fangs and the venom glands are almost entirely atrophied.
The scientific name commemorates the French naturalist Joseph Fortuné Théodore Eydoux
.
This species is found in Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
, Northern Territory
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory is a federal territory of Australia, occupying much of the centre of the mainland continent, as well as the central northern regions...
, Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
, the South China Sea
South China Sea
The South China Sea is a marginal sea that is part of the Pacific Ocean, encompassing an area from the Singapore and Malacca Straits to the Strait of Taiwan of around...
,
the Gulf of Thailand
Gulf of Thailand
The Gulf of Thailand , also known in to Malays as Teluk Siam literally meant Gulf of Siam, is a shallow arm of the South China Sea.-Geography:...
, Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
, Peninsular Malaysia
Peninsular Malaysia
Peninsular Malaysia , also known as West Malaysia , is the part of Malaysia which lies on the Malay Peninsula. Its area is . It shares a land border with Thailand in the north. To the south is the island of Singapore. Across the Strait of Malacca to the west lies the island of Sumatra...
, Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
, and New Guinea
New Guinea
New Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
.
This snake is unusual amongst sea snakes in that it feeds exclusively on fish eggs.Due to this ecological change, this species has lost its fangs and the venom glands are almost entirely atrophied.
The scientific name commemorates the French naturalist Joseph Fortuné Théodore Eydoux
Joseph Fortuné Théodore Eydoux
Joseph Fortuné Théodore Eydoux Joseph Fortuné Théodore Eydoux Joseph Fortuné Théodore Eydoux (1802 - 1841 was a French naturalist.Eydoux and Louis François Auguste Souleyet were surgeon naturalists on the expedition ship "La Favorite" which made a circumnavigation in 1830-32 captained by Cyrille...
.