WHAT SNAKE IS THIS??????

[peterescue]

They are the only truely pelagic sea snake meaning that they live and feed at the surface. ie:the top strata of the ocean. The darker dorsal would give camoflage from above and the yellow ventral would do What?

[moosenoose]

Originally Posted by peterescue

They are the only truely pelagic sea snake meaning that they live and feed at the surface. ie:the top strata of the ocean. The darker dorsal would give camoflage from above and the yellow ventral would do What?

Make it look like a large banana floating on the waters surface, thus preventing giving away it's position and creating an element of stealth.

[Fuscus]

Originally Posted by instar

...i wonder what purpous coloration like that serves?...

Coloration is the standard marine pattern, dark above the animal so that it is harder to see at a distance from above and light below so that it is harder to see at a distance from below.
YBSS are open-water animals. Feeding is often on fish that try and hide under it. If the prey realizes that they are hiding under an animal they will then try an hide at the tail end because they think it is safer. So the YBSS often swims backwards so that the prey hides near the toothy end.

[moosenoose]

Its a natural camoflage that is just about on everything. A good example is that aboreal snakes have lighter underbelliesin the way of lighter motley patterns, so that it is harder for predators to see them from the ground when looking skywards and darker topsides so that predatory birds find it harder to see them from above through the trees. No doubt the darker tops of some snakes also aid in extracting the most heat & absorption from the sun, hence Diamond pythons and where they live.

[instar]

Thanks for serious info Pete, Fuscus, moose! I read or watched about a seasnake swimming backwards, might have been Sir David job. Anyways, glad you liked my little Crikey impersonation. Lol