AUSTRALIAN BIODIVERSITY RECORD - Calodema

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Australian Biodiversity Record, 2007 (8): 1-124Etymology: The name ‘vorisi’ honours American herpetologist Harold K. Voris.Genus Leioselasma Lacepede, 1804Leioselasma Lacépède, B.G.E. (1804): Ann. Mus. Natl Hist. Nat. Paris 4: 184-211 [seeKharin, V.E. (1984): Zool. Zh. 63(10): 1535-1546 for the formal definition and re-instatementof the genus Leioselasma]Leioselasmus Fischer (1808): Tabl. Syn. Zoog., ed. 2, Rept. Col., (7) [nom. nov. proLeioselasma Lacepède 1804]Lielasma Agassiz (1846): Nomen. Zool. Index Univ. [emend. pro Leioselasma Lacepède1804]Diagnosis: A genus of moderately large species of Hydrophiid snakes readily identified by thefollowing combination of characters: anterior part of body much more slender than theposterior, which is deep and moderately compressed; head shields enlarged, symmetrical;valvular nostrils and lingual fossa; 5-8 maxillary teeth following fang; supralabials 6-7; 3rd and4th supralabials contacting orbit; preocular 1; postoculars 1-2 (usually 1); 1 large primarytemporal; nasal separated from preocular by high 2nd supralabial; mental groove present anddistinct; mental triangular, broader than long, and not partially hidden in the shallow mentalgroove; anterior chin scales large, and usually bordering mental groove; body scales weaklyimbricate anteriorly, juxtaposed posteriorly; body scales 21-28 rows at neck, 29-36 rows atmid.body; posterior ventrals distinct, mostly undivided; ventrals 275-320; small ventrals onlyslightly wider than adjacent body scales and never foliform; tail strongly compressedvertically, paddle-like; ovoviviparous. Content: Leioselasma coggeri Kharin 1984;Leioselasma cyanocinctus (Daudin 1803); Leioselasma czeblukovi Kharin 1984; Leioselasmamamillaris (Daudin 1803); Leioselasma melanocephala Gray 1849; Leioselasma pacifica(Boulenger 1896); Leioselasma semperi (Garman 1881); and, Leioselasma spiralis (Shaw1802). Content in Australia: Leioselasma coggeri Kharin, 1984; Leioselasma czeblukoviKharin, 1984; Leioselasma pacifica (Boulenger, 1896). [Note: The Asian species Leioselasmamelanocephala (Gray, 1849) is no longer considered part of the Australian herpetofauna, theprevious records of this species being based on what is now known as Leioselasma coggeriKharin, 1984].Note: As to the identity of Leioselasma striata Lacépède, B.G.E. (1804): Ann. Mus. Natl Hist.Nat. Paris 4: 184-211 [p. 198, 210] there is some confusion. The decision by McDowell (1972)to regard this species as a synonym of Hydrophis cyanocinctus Daudin, 1803 [see McDowell,S.B. (1972): Trans. Zool. Soc. Lond. 32: 189-247 [p. 215] was rejected by Cogger (1983) ascyanocinctus was not known from Australian waters. McDowell suggested that the specimenrepresented by pl. 18, figs 4-5 in Schlegel, H. (1837). (ex Merrem ms). [see Essai sur laPhysionomie des Serpens. 2. Partie descriptive. Kips and Stockum, La Haye] be made theNeotype of Leioselasma striata Lacépède,1804]. Type data: Holotype MNHP [presumed lost[Boie, F. (1827): Isis Oken 20: 508-566 (see p. 553)]. Type locality: Australia.Leioselasma coggeri Kharin, 1984Leioselasma coggeri Kharin, V.E. (1984): Zool. Zh. 63(10): 1535-1546 [p. 1538]. Type data:holotype ZIL 19681. Type locality: Port Suva [Viti Levu], Fiji.Description: Specimens in Australian waters once regarded as Hydrophis melanocephalusand Hydrophis belcheri should be referred to Leioselasma coggeri, as melanocephalusdefinitely does not occur here, and belcheri has never been positively identified in Australia,although it can be found in nearby regions. Leioselasma coggeri has a conspicuously smallhead that is not distinct from the neck. It is a rather elongate species that has the anterior partof body much more slender than the posterior, which is deep and moderately compressed.The base body colour is pale greenish to olive-grey with scattered black flecking in adults,and the head is black. There is usually a series of around 28-40 dark blackish cross-bands inadult specimens that are more or less equal in intensity in colour and width along body, with42
Australian Biodiversity Record, 2007 (8): 1-124some bands sharply tapering mid-laterally, before expanding again ventrally. The anterior ofthe venter is black due to the continuation of the transverse black banding over the ventrals.There is no pattern of secondary bands or blotches in the pale interspaces between the darkbands, but the bands tend to be less distinct in larger specimens (age?). Juveniles tend to bepale yellowish with a series of very distinct black bands, with the black head colour beingstrikingly marked with a yellowish line that forms a vague horse-shoe shape across theprefrontals, the snout, orbit, postoculars and primary temporals. The subcaudal area andposterior of the tail is black in juveniles. Some significant features of this species’ morphologyare: head shields enlarged, symmetrical; anterior part of maxilla not arched upwards, the tipof the fang projecting conspicuously below a line connecting the tips of the solid maxillaries;5-8 maxillary teeth following fang; supralabials 6-7; 3rd and 4th supralabials contacting orbit;preocular 1; postoculars 1-2 (usually 1); 1 large primary temporal; nasal separated frompreocular by high 2nd supralabial; mental groove present and distinct; mental triangular,broader than long, and not partially hidden in the shallow mental groove; anterior chin scaleslarge, and usually bordering mental groove; body scales weakly imbricate anteriorly,juxtaposed posteriorly; body scales 21-29 rows at neck, 29-36 rows at mid-body; posteriorventrals distinct, mostly undivided; ventrals 275-360; small ventrals only slightly wider thanadjacent body scales and never foliform. May attain a maximum total length of only around 1m., although a specimen 1.3 m. has been recorded. Variation in morphology suggests thatthis species may be composite.Distribution: Widely known from the Indian Ocean, South East Asia through Indonesia's TimorSea and Australia, across the Arafura Sea to New Guinea waters, and into the Coral Sea andSouth West Pacific, including Vanuatu, New Caledonia, the Loyalty Islands and Fiji. InAustralian seas, it is commonly found off the coasts of Queensland, including the outer reefsof the Coral Sea, the Northern Territory and north-western Western Australia, about AshmoreReef and Scott Reef.Habitat: Apparently inhabits a variety of tropical marine conditions ranging from the deeperwaters at the edges of coral reefs, gulf seagrass beds, mangrove flats, river deltas, coral reefsto estuaries - in relatively shallow continental shelf waters with sandy or muddy bottoms fromaround 25 to 45 metres in depth.Biology/Ecology: This is a fast-swimming species that is believed to be mainly diurnal in itsactivity, although it has also been observed at the surface during night-time. Its diet comprisesburrowing eels (Ophichthidae and Congridae) which it hunts on the sandy bottoms, by slowlysearching in the tunnels inhabited by the eels. When an eel is seized, it usually swallowedtail-first. Ovoviviparous, producing up to 8 living young in a brood.Toxicity: Although this species is reluctant to bite without some sort of serious provocation -like being seized by a human and hauled from the water - it will bite if harassed, so cautionshould be exerted. Although there are no known human fatalities arising from the bite of thisspecies, its venom is highly toxic to humans, so urgent medical attention should always besought if someone is bitten.Survival Status: Protected under the Qld Nature Conservation Act (1992), the Territory Parksand Wildlife Conservation Act (1998) and the WA Wildlife Conservation Act 1950 (asamended). Listed as a Marine Protected Species under the Australian EnvironmentalProtection and Biodiversity Conservation Act (1999). Probably not under threat, but itsapparently patchy distribution in Australian waters could potentially make it vulnerable insome parts of its range.Etymology: The name ‘coggeri’ honours Australian herpetologist Harold George Cogger.43
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AUSTRALIAN BIODIVERSITY RECORD - Calodema

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