A new subspecies of sea snake, Hydrophis platurus xanthos, from Golfo Dulce, Costa Rica

Bessesen, Brooke L.; Galbreath, Gary J.

doi:10.3897/zookeys.686.12682

Cited by 10 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 19 publications

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“…Conversely, resting in a serpentine shape ( RS ) and feeding sinusoidal ( FS ) were far more common at night, when snakes fluidly shifted between RO and RS , and sometimes in and out of FS . As previously reported by Bessesen and Galbreath (2017), we only saw H. p. xanthos in its ambush posture ( FS ) between sunset and sunrise (3 sightings of FS occurred post sunset but within 9 min of 18:00 h). Snakes were found swimming ( N ) and knotting ( K ) in similar percentages during day and night (Figure 4).…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 80%

“…Hydrophis platurus xanthos is endemic to the inner‐basin waters of Golfo Dulce, Costa Rica, an area with higher sea surface temperatures (SST) and lower salinity than those found in the neighboring Eastern Tropical Pacific Ocean (Rasmussen et al, 2011; Rincón‐Alejos & Ballestero‐Sakson, 2015; Wellington & Dunbar, 1995). This allopatric population has transitioned from a black‐backed, yellow‐bellied phenotype to monochromatic xanthic (yellow) coloration and smaller body size (Bessesen & Galbreath, 2017), presumably to avoid overheating under solar exposure (Bessesen, 2012; Solórzano, 2011). Though, with numerous avian predators in Golfo Dulce (personal observation), such conspicuous coloration and lost countershading could negate certain survival advantages.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Safe from sunburn: The divergent diel pattern of a Hydrophis sea snake

Bessesen

González‐Suárez

2022

Ecology and Evolution

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Diel activity patterns are an important aspect of wildlife ecology and evolution and provide valuable information for conservation and monitoring, yet for many species, activity patterns remain unstudied and may be presumed to mirror related taxa. Here, we describe the distinct diel patterns of an endemic population of venomous sea snakes Hydrophis platurus xanthos inhabiting a narrow range (circa 320 km2) in Golfo Dulce, Costa Rica. To investigate, we conducted a systematic visual survey over five 24‐h cycles and evaluated 339 h of previously obtained sighting data from different studies spanning a decade. While sporadic diurnal surfacing does occur, mostly for respiration, our observations revealed marked crepuscular peaks with regular surfacing through the night. We also report on observed surface behaviors that were also found to vary in frequency at different phases of the photoperiodic cycle. In particular, we show feeding as more common at night. Hydrophis platurus xanthos has developed a circadian rhythm that differs noticeably from its taxonomic parent (H. p. platurus is reported as diurnal across its Indo‐Pacific range), and no congeners have been categorized as crepuscular. Our work thus contributes to the ecological knowledge of this evolutionarily distinct marine elapid and offers insights into the potential role of environmental conditions in shaping animal activity.

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Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 80%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Safe from sunburn: The divergent diel pattern of a Hydrophis sea snake

Bessesen

González‐Suárez

2022

Ecology and Evolution

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“…There is an important base of information on air breathing vertebrates that live on this ecosystem. There are reports on the population of the sea snake Pelamis platurus (Bessesen, 2012) and its colour variability (Solórzano, 2011), and on a recently described subspecies (Bessesen & Galbreath, 2017). The population and habitat use of the green turtle Chelonia Research on marine mammals has been emphasized with studies on humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) by Bessesen (2015) and Herra-Miranda et al (2016), the false killer whale Pseudorca crassidens (Sánchez-Robledo et al, 2020), dolphins (mainly the bottlenose dolphin Tursiops truncatus and the spotted dolphin Stenella attenuata) and other cetaceans (Acevedo, 1995;Acevedo-Gutiérrez, 1996;Acevedo & Burkhart,1998;Cubero-Pardo, 1998;Cubero-Pardo, 2007a;Cubero-Pardo, 2007b;Oviedo, 2007;Herra-Miranda et al, 2016;Moreno & Acevedo-Gutiérrez, 2016;Oviedo et al, 2018).…”

Section: Reptiles and Cetaceansmentioning

confidence: 99%

A fjord-like tropical ecosystem, Pacific coast of Costa Rica: overview of research in Golfo Dulce

Vargas-Zamora¹,

Gómez-Ramírez

Moráles-Ramírez

2021

Rev. Biol. Trop.

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Introduction: Coastal ecosystems worldwide are under the influence of local, regional and global stressors, such as pollution, eutrophication and climate change. Golfo Dulce is a relatively pristine and accessible deep tropical ecosystem that provides opportunities for comparative and collaborative research. Objective: To summarize published reports on past research conducted in this ecosystem, identify topics for further study, and suggest new research issues. Methods: A search was made on the web for reports based on research conducted in Golfo Dulce and published in scientific journals. Reports focusing on environmental parameters and on the biota were included. Results: A total of 123 studies that include data from Golfo Dulce are cited. The four topics more frequently addressed were reports based on the results of the R/V Victor Hensen expedition (1993-1994) and follow-up work on microbiology, studies on water parameters, research on vertebrates, and zooplankton studies. The reports focusing on vertical profiles of oxygen and temperature are discussed in detail, followed by those on the biota. Conclusions: Golfo Dulce has low oxygen concentrations below 50 m and is frequently anoxic at the 200 m deep basin with occasional formation of H2S. However, the ecosystem contains a relatively high diversity of identified organisms, from bacteria to whales. Of particular relevance for future studies are multidisciplinary surveys aiming at obtaining data on primary productivity, the diversity and biomass of the main groups of planktonic, demersal and benthic organisms, and the frequency and magnitude of the influx of deep offshore waters over the sill into the basin. These data, as well as the information gathered in the past, are essential for updating the trophic model developed more than 25 years ago and in support of new predictive models on the functioning of the ecosystem.

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“…There is only one truly pelagic sea snake (Hydrophis platurus), and it has the widest range of all sea snakes. Hydrophis platurus is found both in the Pacific and Indian Oceans, and a few specimens have been observed in the Atlantic Ocean (Bessesen & Galbreath, 2017;Branch, 1998). Other species, such as H. caerulescens, H. cyanocinctus, H. curtus H. ornatus, H. peronii, H. spiralis, and H. stokesii have a very wide distribution in both Asia as well as in the Australian region ((Buzas et al, 2019;David & Ineich, 1999;Gritis & Voris, 1990;Ineich & Rasmussen, 1997;Rasmussen et al, 2014;Rezaie-Atagholipour et al, 2016).…”

Section: Criterion 4: Higher Taxa Widely Distributed Geographically and Over A Breadth Of Habitatmentioning

confidence: 99%

Viviparous sea snakes can be used as bioindicators for diverse marine environments

Rasmussen

Hay‐Schmidt

Boneka

et al. 2021

Philippine Journal of Systematic Biology

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Shallow tropical marine ecosystems are under great anthropogenic pressure due to habitat destruction, overfishing, shrimping, climate change, and tourism. This is an issue of global concern as such environments hold a tremendous biodiversity much of which remains to be described. The present situation urgently calls for time- and resource-efficient methods to identify and delineate the most valuable remaining areas and to set up priorities for their management and conservation. Using indicator species can be a way to accomplish this goal. In this paper we evaluate whether viviparous sea snakes can serve as bioindicators for other rare or cryptic tropical marine fauna. Based on seven generally acknowledged criteria for bioindicators, we argue that using viviparous sea snakes as bioindicators can help monitoring marine habitats to gauge the effects of climate change, habitat change and loss, decline in biodiversity and other anthropogenic changes. However, to maximize their efficacy as bioindicators, deeper knowledge about viviparous sea snakes natural history is urgently needed. Topics for expanded research programs include the taxonomy of some groups, their breeding and feeding biology, habitat selection and their geographical distribution. Despite these gaps in our understanding, we argue that viviparous sea snakes can be utilized as bioindicators of marine ecosystem health. KEYWORDS: anthropogenic changes, conservation, herpetology, marine habitat, monitoring

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A new subspecies of sea snake, Hydrophis platurus xanthos, from Golfo Dulce, Costa Rica

Cited by 10 publications

References 19 publications

Safe from sunburn: The divergent diel pattern of a Hydrophis sea snake

Safe from sunburn: The divergent diel pattern of a Hydrophis sea snake

A fjord-like tropical ecosystem, Pacific coast of Costa Rica: overview of research in Golfo Dulce

Viviparous sea snakes can be used as bioindicators for diverse marine environments

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