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A yellow-bellied sea snake, which is also called the excessively poisonous Pelamis platura, is not seen too often in California's cold waters. Yet, a dead snake was washed onto a state beach on the state's southern coast, according to National Geographic.

Its dead body was discovered at Bolsa Chica State Beach when a cleaning was undertaken by a local Surfrider Foundation.

But before this, the snake has been found just once last October in California. Before that, it was found only in the 1970s.

Distinctive by its bright yellow belly and a paddle-like tail, the snake has the ability to remain under water for almost three hours. It can grow to a length of 35 inches. Most sea snakes live in the warm waters of the Pacific and Indian Oceans. Being seen in the cold waters of California has made many point to El Niño as the cause.

With the warming of ocean currents, the yellow-bellied sea snake is heading further north, outside the range of normal living areas, according to Live Science. But as the oceans cool in the winter, the species might fall ill due to less food.

"The Yellow-bellied Sea Snake has some of the most poisonous venom in the world, and is a descendant from Asian cobras and Australian tiger snakes," said Dana Murray of Heal the Bay, an environmental advocacy group.

Being extremely venomous, the snake is a danger to anyone who touches it. Still, the snake does not bite humans much, and if it does, it usually releases only a small amount of venom that can stun a fish.

"There's absolutely no reason to panic," said Harvey Lillywhite, a sea snake expert at the University of Florida. "When these animals are in their natural habitat they don't tend to be aggressive, they'll just swim away. If you pick them up they will tend to bite, but looking at them is probably fine."

Some specimens have been shifted into the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles.