"Pelamis platura", the pelagic sea snake, is the only one of the 65 species of marine snakes to spend its entire life in the pelagic zone. It bears live young at sea and is helpless on land. The species sometimes forms aggregations of thousands along slicks in surface waters. The pelagic sea snake is the world's most widely distributed snake species. Many species of sea turtles spend the first years of their lives in the pelagic zone, moving closer to shore as they reach maturity.