Why was the genus name *Pelamis* replaced with *Hydrophis* for the yellow-bellied sea snake?
Answer
To reduce paraphyly and better reflect its evolutionary relationship with other sea snakes.
The scientific classification of the yellow-bellied sea snake underwent revision based on recent molecular evidence. This evidence indicated that retaining the separate genus *Pelamis* resulted in paraphyly within the broader group of sea snakes. Consolidation into the genus *Hydrophis* was performed specifically to create a classification system that more accurately reflects the snake’s true evolutionary relationship within the monophyletic group that comprises sea snakes, which diverged from Australasian land snakes millions of years ago.
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