Elapids

Indeed the way sea snakes are related to other elapids is interesting, to say the least. ❋ Darren Naish (2006)

Then there are the Viperidae, rattlesnakes and pit vipers and copperheads, that also have front fangs, but phylogenetically belong to a distinct lineage from the elapids. ❋ Unknown (2010)

Though sea snakes all possess a vertically flat, paddle-like tail (a feature not seen in any other snakes), most snake experts have agreed that the term ‘sea snake’ includes two quite different groups of aquatic elapids: the laticaudids, or sea kraits, and the hydrophiids (or hydrophids or hydropheids), or true sea snakes. ❋ Darren Naish (2006)

Delfino et al. (2003) suggested that the loss of chelydrids (and other taxa, including cryptobranchid salamanders, varanids and elapids) from Pliocene Europe might have been triggered by the climatic cooling that kicked in at this time. ❋ Darren Naish (2006)

The reason it was overlooked so long was based upon the fundamental assumption that only the three lineages with advanced venom delivery architecture atractaspidids, elapids and viperids had venom, that fangs were required. ❋ Unknown (2005)

The Laticauda species sea kraits are genetically intermediate between Asian and Australian elapids while the true sea snakes are deeply rooted within the live-bearing lineage of Australian elapids. ❋ Unknown (2005)

Yep, the sea snakes are simply very derived elapids. ❋ Unknown (2005)

Most deaths are attributed to elapids cobras, kraits, mambas, corals, vipers and sea snakes. ❋ Unknown (2011)

Conventional thinking has been that: if sea snakes descended from terrestrial elapids, we shouldn’t then expect them to have a history extending beyond the Early Miocene. ❋ Darren Naish (2006)

Given that the oldest fossil elapids – cobras, coral snakes and other forms from Germany, Spain and the Czech Republic (Ivanov 2002) – are from the Early Miocene, it’s generally thought that sea snakes can’t be older than this. ❋ Darren Naish (2006)

Some taxonomists place sea snakes in a separate group from the elapids the hydrophiids, some don’t. ❋ Unknown (2005)