Elapidae · Global account with Philippine editorial coverage

Yellow Sea Snake

Hydrophis spiralis(SHAW, 1802)

Length: Length not yet addedAtlas entry awaiting completion
Venom status: VenomousHuman effects: atlas summary awaiting completion
Known venom effects: Effects not yet summarised in this atlas

Size & venom sources

Venom: Basic classification explicitly recorded in the species account. Detailed effects and medical significance have not yet been summarised here.

Species account, Comments

Reference 1 ↓

Venom effects and medical significance are different from toxicity rankings. Do not handle a snake on the basis of this summary.

Narrow black rings cross a yellowish or yellow-green body. The account contrasts dark-headed juveniles with usually yellow-headed adults. Philippine occurrence is listed, with island-level detail still unresolved.

OccurrenceProvisional

Islands named0

Natural history5 sourced topics

References3

Literature updated 2026-10-07 · Editorial review pending

Explore the island records ↓

Species portrait

Hydrophis spiralis

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The illustrated collection

Adult & juvenile

Adult · study plate

Hydrophis spiralis

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Juvenile · study plate

Hydrophis spiralis

Image to follow

Reserved for a contributor imageCredit and usage rights will accompany the image.

Life stages will be labelled from the contributor’s information. Images alone do not establish identification or a locality record.

Media provenance

Every image carries its source.

Contributor images are forthcoming. Photographs and illustrations will retain their individual credits, permissions and evidence notes.

One species · Across borders

Global distribution

Explore the recorded countries and islands. Select a highlighted area to see its distribution evidence.

Recorded distribution

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ListedIntroducedUncertain

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Outlines locate marine/coastal records, not land occupancy. Uncoloured areas do not establish absence.

Natural Earth · 1:50m · public domain. Small islands may lack an outline.

Explore the distribution

Across borders

Select a country or territory

15 recorded countries & territories

Select a highlighted area to see its status, island records and sources. Each country and island links to the same shared species collection.

Use “Worldwide records” to include distant introduced and uncertain records in the map view.

Indonesian locality notes and qualifications

Explicit Indonesian country or island locality supports inclusion.

A closer look

Natural history & identification

Distribution

Repeated historical Mergusi record; Tablas also listed. Corroboration needed.

Leviton, A. E. et al. · 2018 ↗

Evidence & scope

Literature documented · pp. 466–467

Coastal island outlines are geographic context, not a mapped marine range.

Appearance & identification

Narrow black rings cross a yellowish or yellow-green body. The account contrasts dark-headed juveniles with usually yellow-headed adults.

Uetz, P. et al. · ↗

Evidence & scope

Literature documented · Diagnosis

Species-level database summary; literature review, not expert validation.

The cited account does not establish population-wide variation or the conditions at every Philippine locality.

Reproduction

The species account records live-bearing reproduction, using the term ovoviviparous. A verified Philippine litter-size range and reproductive calendar are not established here.

Uetz, P. et al. · ↗

Evidence & scope

Literature documented · Reproduction field

Reproductive mode reported for this named species.

Mode alone does not establish litter or clutch size, seasonal timing, or captive husbandry requirements.

Ecology & habitat

The account records a marine habitat. Island names on the map identify reported coastal areas; they are not land occupancy or a boundary of the species’ marine range.

Uetz, P. et al. · ↗

Evidence & scope

Literature documented · Comment: Habitat

Species-level database summary; literature review, not expert validation.

The cited account does not establish population-wide variation or the conditions at every Philippine locality.

Taxonomic context

Hydrophis spiralis is retained in the atlas’s dated checklist under Elapidae. The authority is (SHAW 1802). Earlier names and the original source notes are preserved below for comparison.

Uetz, P. et al. · 2026 ↗

Evidence & scope

Literature documented · Checklist identity and nomenclatural trail

Checklist verified 2026-09-05; not a newly revised taxonomic backbone.

Historical names can cover different biological concepts; synonyms should not be used to transfer records automatically.

Across the archipelago

Where this species is recorded

Philippines

No island-level areas available

Blue outlines locate coastal records, not land occupancy or marine range boundaries.

Philippine distribution

Documented places

Repeated historical Mergusi record; Tablas also listed. Corroboration needed.

Geographic detail still needed

The source resolution does not support an island-level map. Marine records and their limitations are shown below.

Distribution record & sources

Indian Ocean: Persian Gulf, Oman, United Arab Emirates, Iran, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, India (Gujarat), Indonesia (Borneo), Malaysia, Philippines, China, Papua New Guinea, New Caledonia/Loyalty Islands, Thailand, Vietnam, Myanmar, Singapore Type locality: Indian Ocean

Repeated historical Mergusi record; Tablas also listed. Corroboration needed.

Synopsis of the Snakes of the Philippines: A Synthesis of Data from Biodiversity Repositories, Field Studies, and the Literature ↗pp. 466–467

References attached to this species account. Island-specific evidence is shown separately where available.

The Reptile Database — species checklist, 17 June 2026 ↗

Synopsis of the Snakes of the Philippines: A Synthesis of Data from Biodiversity Repositories, Field Studies, and the Literature ↗

Hydrophis spiralis — The Reptile Database species account ↗

Living with wildlife

Give this snake space.

Venomous · Effects not yet summarised in this atlas

Observe from a distance. Do not handle, corner or capture a snake to identify it. An incomplete venom account is not evidence that a species is safe to handle.

After a suspected snakebite, keep the person still and arrange urgent medical care. Avoid tight tourniquets, cutting, suction and unproven remedies. Do not wait to identify the snake before seeking help.

WHO guidance on snakebite first aid

Species record

Taxonomy, occurrence & evidence.

Identity

Accepted name: Hydrophis spiralis
Common names: Yellow Sea Snake, Blotch-backed giant sea snake · Farsi: Mâr-e daryâï-ye zard · Schwarzschwänzige Wasserschlange (Wagler 1828)
Authority: (SHAW 1802)
Year described: 1802
Taxonomic status: Accepted species
Family: Elapidae
Subfamily: Hydrophiinae
Genus: Hydrophis
Species epithet: spiralis
Persistent ID: PH-SERP-6376882CEA
Checklist checked: 2026-09-05

Philippine occurrence

Status: Present
Confidence: Provisional
Basis: Distribution reviewed against cited source (pp. 466–467). Repeated historical Mergusi record; Tablas also listed. Corroboration needed.
Islands named: None explicitly extracted

Range noteCountry/island text is not a range polygon or locality record.

Source distribution statement

Knowledge coverage

EndemismResearch pending

EcologyLiterature documented

VenomVenomous
Effects not yet summarised in this atlasDetailed research: Research pending

ConservationResearch pending

Names through time

Nomenclatural trail

Hydrus spiralis SHAW 1802: 564 Hydrophis brugmansii BOIE 1827: 554 Hydrophis melanurus WAGLER 1828 Hydrophis sublaevis GRAY 1842 Hydrophis spiralis GRAY 1849 Hydrophis spiralis — DUMÉRIL & BIBRON 1854: 1354 Hydrophis robusta GÜNTHER 1864 Hydrophis rappii JAN 1872 in Jan and Sordelli, 1870-1881 Hydrophis temporalis BLANFORD 1881: 680 Hydrophis spiralis — ANDERSON 1872 Hydrophis bishopii MURRAY 1884 Hydrophis aurifasciata MURRAY 1886 Hydrophis melanocinctus WALL 1906 Hydrophis brugmansii — BOULENGER 1912: 184 Distira brugmansi — STONE 1913 Hydrophis brugmansii — SMITH 1920: 12 Lioselasma [sic] spiralis — WALL 1921: 353 Hydrophis spiralis — SMITH 1943: 453 Leioselasma spiralis — PRATER 1924 Leioselasma spiralis — KHARIN 1984 Leioselasma spiralis — WELCH 1994: 72 Leiocephalus spiralis — DAS 1996: 61 Leioselasma spiralis — STUEBING & INGER 1999: 217 Hydrophis spiralis — MURPHY, COX & VORIS 1999 Hydrophis spiralis — BAUER & SADLIER 2000 Hydrophis spiralis — DAVID et al. 2004 Leioselasma spiralis — KHARIN 2005 Hydrophis spiralis — MURTHY 2010 Hydrophis spiralis — RASMUSSEN et al. 2011 Hydrophis spiralis — SANDERS et al. 2012 Leioselasma spiralis — WALLACH et al. 2014: 368 Hydrophis spiralis — REZAIE-ATAGHOLIPOUR et al. 2016: 146

Taxonomic and source notes

Venomous! Distribution: Not listed by BAUER & VINDUM 1990 for New Caledonia/Loyalty Islands. Synonymy: V. WALLACH (pers. comm.) Habitat: marine.

References attached to this record

2026

The Reptile Database — species checklist, 17 June 2026

Uetz, P.; Freed, P.; Aguilar, R.; Reyes, F.; Kudera, J.; Hošek, J. (eds.)

Open source ↗

2018

Synopsis of the Snakes of the Philippines: A Synthesis of Data from Biodiversity Repositories, Field Studies, and the Literature

Leviton, A. E.; Siler, C. D.; Weinell, J. L.; Brown, R. M.

Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences 64(14): 399–568

DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.11512589

Open source ↗

n.d.

Hydrophis spiralis — The Reptile Database species account

Uetz, P.; Hallermann, J. et al. (editors)

Public species fields consulted for bounded biological summaries. Primary sources quoted within the database were not independently examined unless explicitly stated. The catalogue name may differ from the current source title.

Open source ↗