NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Blotch-backed giant sea snake
Hydrophis spiralis (Shaw, 1802)
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Hydrophis spiralis (Shaw, 1802)
- Name authority
- (Shaw, 1802)
- Common name
- Blotch-backed giant sea snake
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Reptilia
- Order
- Squamata
- Family
- Elapidae
- Genus
- Hydrophis
- Extinction status
- Not supplied by this source
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classReptilia Laurenti, 1768
- orderSquamata Oppel, 1811
- suborderSerpentes Linnaeus, 1758
- infraorderAlethinophidia Nopcsa, 1923
- familyElapidae
- subfamilyHydrophiinae
- genusHydrophis
- speciesHydrophis spiralis (Shaw, 1802)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Hydrophis. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Peters' Sea SnakeHydrophis bituberculatus Peters, 1873 | ElapidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Slender-necked SeasnakeHydrophis coggeri (Kharin, 1984) | ElapidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Annulated Sea SnakeHydrophis cyanocinctus Daudin, 1803 | ElapidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Elegant or bar-bellied seasnakeHydrophis elegans (Gray, 1842) | ElapidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Hydrophis hendersoni (Boulenger, 1903) | ElapidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Inornate Sea SnakeHydrophis inornatus (Gray, 1849) | ElapidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Pacific seasnakeHydrophis pacificus Boulenger, 1896 | ElapidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Spiny-headed seasnakeHydrophis peronii (Duméril, 1853) | ElapidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Pelagic Sea SnakeHydrophis platurus (Linnaeus, 1766) | ElapidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Lake Taal SnakeHydrophis semperi Garman, 1881 | ElapidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Stoke’s seasnakeHydrophis stokesii (Gray, 1846) | ElapidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Kloss' Sea SnakeHydrophis klossi Boulenger, 1912 | ElapidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Hydrophis aurifasciata Murray, 1886 Murray, 1886 | synonym |
| Hydrophis robusta Günther, 1864 Günther, 1864 | synonym |
| Hydrophis sublaevis Gray, 1842 Gray, 1842 | synonym |
| Hydrophis temporalis Blanford, 1881 Blanford, 1881 | synonym |
| Hydrophis melanurus Wagler, 1828 Wagler, 1828 | synonym |
| Hydrophis bishopii Murray, 1884 Murray, 1884 | synonym |
| Hydrophis brugmansii Boie, 1827 Boie, 1827 | synonym |
| Hydrophis rappii Jan, 1872 ex Jan & Sordelli, 1870 Jan, 1872 ex Jan & Sordelli, 1870 | synonym |
| Hydrophis melanocinctus Wall, 1906 Wall, 1906 | synonym |
| Hydrus spiralis Shaw, 1802 Shaw, 1802 | synonym |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/species?genus=Hydrophis&species=spiralis Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:3N8C3. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.