Laticauda colubrina (Schneider, 1799)

Figueroa, Alex, Low, Martyn E. Y. & Lim, Kelvin K. P., 2023, Singapore’s herpetofauna: updated and annotated checklist, history, conservation, and distribution, Zootaxa 5287 (1), pp. 1-378 : 198-200

Laticauda colubrina (Schneider, 1799) — Native.

Hydrus Colubrinus Schneider, 1799: 238–240 . Holotype: ZMB 9078, by original designation. Type locality: “Ostindisches Meer” (= East Indian Ocean ), according to Bauer (1998: 139); Heatwole et al. (2005: 101) mention that the type locality “is probably somewhere in Indonesia ”.

Yellow-lipped Sea Krait

( Figure 23C )

Singapore records.

Laticauda scutata — Cantor, 1847c: 1057.

Platurus scutatus — Dennys, 1880a: 3.— Blanford, 1881: 216.

Platurus colubrinus — Flower, 1896: 893.— Hanitsch, 1898: 20.— Flower, 1899: 689.—Ridley, 1899: 209.— Boulenger, 1912: 197.— Hanitsch, 1912b: 17.— de Rooij, 1917: 217.

Laticauda laticaudata colubrina — Barbour, 1912: 132.

Laticauda colubrina —Sworder, 1923: 71.— Smith, 1926: xiv, 6.—Smedley, 1930: 312.—Smedley, 1931a: 13.—Smedley, 1931c: 54 (Raffles Lighthouse [Pulau Satumu).—Warburton, 1933: 564.— Herre, 1942: 8 (Pulau Salo [=Pulau Salu]).— Smith, 1943: 444.— de Haas, 1950: 587.— Harman, 1961: 183.—D.S. Johnson, 1964: 72.—Taylor, 1965: 982 (Pulau Biola).— Levey, 1969: 270 (Pulau Sudong).— Chuang, 1973: 4.—Sharma, 1973: 237 (Pulau Sudong).— Keirans & Brewster, 1981: 156.—L.M. Chou, 1988b: 116 (Pulau Hantu; Pulau Semakau; Pulau Sudong).—Leng & K. Lim, 1988: 22 (Pulau Sudong; Sentosa Swimming Lagoon).— Gremli, 1988: 60.—F.L.K. Lim & M.T.- M. Lee, 1989: 115.— Gopalakrishnakone, 1990: 3.—K.K.P. Lim & L.M. Chou, 1990: 54.—F.L.K. Lim, 1991: 78.—D.S. Johnson, 1992: 98.—K.K.P. Lim & Subharaj, 1992: 8 (Sentosa).—K.K.P. Lim & F.L.K. Lim, 1992: 91, 148.—L.M. Chou, 1993: 153.—L.M. Chou et al., 1994: 106.— P.K.L. Ng et al., 1995: 119.— Cox et al., 1998: 33.— Iskandar & Colijn, 2001: 148.—K.P. Lim & F.L.K. Lim, 2002: 148.— Leviton et al., 2003: 427.—K. Lee: 2003: 120.— Heatwole et al., 2005: 33, 133 (Blakang Mati [= Sentosa]; Pulau Biola; Pulau Salo [=Pulau Salu]; Sentosa; Siglap).— Nadchatram, 2006: 9, 12 (Pulau Sudong).—E.K. Chua, 2007b: 107 (Terumbu Bayan Reef, Pulau Ular [Pulau Bukom Kechil]).—P.K.L. Ng et al., 2007: 135.—Sharma, 2007: 314.—H.T.W. Tan et al., 2007: 119.—N. Baker & K.P. Lim, 2008: 119, 161.—K.K.P. Lim et al., 2008: 1697, 265.— M.F.C. Ng, 2009: 59, 109 (Semakau Landfill [PS]).— Das, 2010: 323.—H.T.W. Tan et al., 2010: 158.— Chanhome et al., 2011: 318.—M.A.H. Chua, 2011: 282 (Semakau Landfill [PS]).—P.K.L. Ng et al., 2011: 302.—N. Baker & K.P. Lim, 2012: 119, 161.— Das, 2012a: 99.— Davison et al., 2012: 84.—M.F.C. Ng, 2012: 69, 146 (Semakau Landfill [PS]).— Chim, 2014: 112, 114 (Saint John’s Island).—Wallach et al., 2014: 363.—Chan-ard et al., 2015: 260.—W. Wong, 2017: 96.— Cox et al., 2018: 76.— Das, 2018: 118.— Leviton et al., 2018: 468.— Charlton, 2020: 242.—M.L. Kwak et al., 2020: 2.—M.L. Kwak & A. Ng, 2022: 929.

Laticauda colubrina ?—Smedley & Kloss, 1926: 163–164.

“ Laticauda ” —L.W.H. Tan & P.K.L. Ng, 1992a: 145.

“sea snake”—M.L. Kwak, 2018b: 266.

Remarks. By far the most commonly observed sea snake in Singapore ( Baker & Lim 2012), L. colubrina was first reported by Cantor (1847c) who said it was rare in Singapore based on catches from fishing nets. Afterwards, Dennys (1880a), Blanford (1881), Hanitsch (1898), and Ridley (1899) referred to specimens at the Raffles Museum, but did not state any details. Smith (1926) later specified that the Raffles Museum holds three specimens, but also did not provide any other information. Smedley and Kloss (1926) described one that was speared at an unknown location off Singapore in January 1926. Recognised for their peculiar terrestrial reproductive mode among sea snakes, Smedley (1930) was the first to describe the oviparous habits of Laticauda when six eggs appeared in a tank holding six captive snakes that were recently brought to the Raffles Museum. The location where the snakes were collected was not provided, but Smedley (1930) mentioned that keepers from various lighthouses claim that L. colubrina becomes numerous around June, which he regarded as a shoreward migration for breeding. Then a year later, Smedley (1931a) described witnessing a L. colubrina laying eggs that later successfully hatched. Smedley (1931a) also noted that this event occurred between June and August in Singapore. Herre (1942) also found L. colubrina to be numerous, describing finding 15 individuals within 15 minutes at Pulau Salu. Nadchatram (2006) mentioned that up to five or six individuals can be found in rock holes in tidal reefs at low tide, and collected 18 individuals at Pulau Sudong in October 1959. The years following, L. colubrina was consistently reported from Singapore, but in recent times it’s only been reported three times. Chua (2007b) reported one from Terumbu Bayan reef at Pulau Bukom Kechil, and the other two were from Pulau Semakau (Ng 2009; Chua 2011) and Saint John’s Island ( Chim 2014). Between Warburton (1933) and Harman (1961), L. colubrina went unreported for 28 years ( Table 2 ).

In Singapore, L. colubrina was regarded as only occurring throughout the Southern Islands, and not the mainland ( Baker & Lim 2012), until an individual was observed moving along the stone seawall near Dragon’s Teeth Gate in Labrador Nature Reserve on 22 July 2015 ( Fig. 23C ) (P. Vogrinc pers. comm.). However, there are even earlier records of L. colubrina from mainland Singapore. Specimens BMNH 1936.7.9.9 and BMNH 1936.7.9.8 were collected off Changi and Siglap, respectively, and Harman (1961) noted collecting one that was most likely taken from Changi, Jurong, or Pasir Panjang, areas where he collected.

Occurrence. Restricted to the southern coastline, Singapore Strait, and Southern Islands. Uncommon.

Singapore conservation status. Vulnerable.

Conservation priority. Highest.

IUCN conservation status. Least Concern [2010].

LKCNHM & NHMUK Museum specimens. Singapore (no locality): BMNH 1926.11.1.5 (no date), BMNH 1936.7.9.5–6 (no date), ZRC.2.2143–ZRC.2.2144 (no date), ZRC.2.2145 (Aug-1915), ZRC.2.2146 (14- Jan-1926), ZRC.2.2147 (Sep-1926); Changi: BMNH 1936.7.9.9 (no date); Pulau Hantu: ZRC.2.7011– ZRC.2.701 (30-May-2013) [lagoon]; Pulau Semakau: ZRC.2.3420 (07-Sep-1993); Raffles Lighthouse [Pulau Satumu]: ZRC.2.2149 (Jul-1937), ZRC.2.2150 (1938); Saint John’s Island: ZRC.2.2148 (20- Mar-1917); Sentosa: BMNH 1936.7.9.7 (no date), ZRC.2.4759 (1986), ZRC.2.3362 (21-May-1992); Siglap: BMNH 1936.7.9.8 (no date).

Additional Singapore museum specimens. Singapore (no locality): CAS, FMNH, MCZ, ZMO; Pulau Biola: BPBM; Raffles Lighthouse [= Pulau Satumu]: BPBM, MCZ

Singapore localities. Changi—Labrador Nature Park—Pulau Biola—Pulau Bukom Kechil—Pulau Hantu—Pulau Salu—Pulau Satumu—Pulau Semakau—Pulau Sudong—Saint John’s Island—Sentosa—Siglap.

Genus Naja Laurenti, 1768 (1 species)

Naja Laurenti, 1768: 90 (type species: Coluber naja Linnaeus, 1758 , by absolute tautonymy [see Article 68.4 of the Code, ICZN, 1999: 71]; gender feminine).

Figures

FIGURE 23. A) Hydrophis stokesii, B) Hydrophis stokesii, C) Laticauda colubrina, D) Naja sumatrana, E) Ophiophagus hannah, F) Bitia hydroides, G) Cantoria violacea, and H) Cerberus schneiderii. Photographs by: Kelvin K.P. Lim [A], Christopher J. Jolly [B], Philip Vogrinc [C], Alex Figueroa [D, G–H], Francis L.K. Lim [E], and Evan S.H. Quah [F].