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About
Seahorses
Seahorses are fish,
complete with gills, fins, and a swim-bladder (used to keep a fish
buoyant). Early history books mistakenly classified them as an
insect or even shellfish. With a head like a horse, a tail like a
monkey, pouch like a kangaroo, and independently moving eyes like
a chameleon, it’s no wonder they were confused.
Seahorses belong to
the family Syngnathidae, from the Greek words syn meaning fused
and gnathus meaning jaws. The family includes seahorses, pipefish,
pipehorses, and sea dragons.
Seahorses belong to
the genus, Hippocampus, from the Greek words hippos meaning horse
and campus meaning sea-monster.
Often thought of as a
mythical creature, half horse, half fish, on which Greek sea gods
rode most people are fascinated to learn that seahorses live so
close to them.
Seahorses are found
world-wide, usually in shallow, coastal tropical and temperate
waters. Often hanging on seagrasses or grasping pieces of coral,
pier pilings, and sponges, seahorses go unspotted due to their
camouflaging abilities.
Seahorses in the
Chesapeake Bay are often found hanging on crab pots, an unlikely
place and a little hard to camouflage to, but since the decline of
the grasses found here, seahorses haven’t had much of a choice.
Seahorses live in the most threatened habitats in the world.
Seagrass beds, mangroves, coral reefs, and estuaries are among the
most productive, diverse, and biologically rich habitats in the
world. These same areas are also in danger of disappearing. They
face a range of threats including pollution, over fishing,
encroaching urban and industrial development, siltation from clear
cutting forests, extraction (cutting mangroves or mining
limestone), or invasion of non-native species (introduced from
ballast waters of ships). Without habitat conservation and better
management practices seahorses and their habitats will soon be
lost.
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 The
Lined Seahorse
Hippocampus erectus
Distribution:
Western Atlantic and Caribbean, covering the east coast of Canada,
USA, Central and South America
Habitat:
Shallow water, usually 4 –5 feet in seagrass, sponges, crab pots,
and hanging on pier pilings. Tolerates salinities from full
strength marine to brackish.
Food: Adult seahorses feed on any live animals that fit into their
thin tubular snout including small fish, crustaceans, and
invertebrates. Seahorses have no teeth or stomach. Food is
swallowed whole and passes quickly through their digestive system.
Lifespan: Actual lifespans are unknown. It is hard to follow
seahorses in the wild, and in captivity lifespans are dependent on
their care. Estimates from captive populations are one year for
small species and three years for larger seahorses.
_________________________________________________________
I
Just caught a seahorse, now what?
Most people are fascinated that seahorses live so close to them,
and are even more excited when they find one hanging on a crab pot
or pier piling. Although seahorses can be quite interesting
creatures, they don’t make good pets. Many seahorses throughout
the world are threatened or endangered. Pressures, such as over-
harvesting for commercial trade, bycatch in fisheries (meaning
they accidentally get caught in the nets), and loss of habitat are
reasons seahorses don’t have much of a chance to increase their
numbers.
In the wild, seahorses only live an estimated three years. The
number is only an estimate because scientists have no way of
tracking such small animals. We really don’t know much about
seahorses at all. Some have lifespans as short as one year. That’s
not much time to grow up, find a partner for life (seahorses are
monogamous, you know), and reproduce. And that’s if they happen to
get lucky and don’t meet up with any predators, including humans.
Male seahorses give birth to an average of 100- 300 juvenile
seahorses at one time. The numbers are great, but their survival
rate is low. Seahorses are often swept away in tides or currents
and preyed upon by crabs, fish, and humans. It is for these
reasons that we at the Calvert Marine Museum are breeding
seahorses and rearing the young. The museum has the facilities
necessary to control the environments, maintain healthy, well fed
seahorses, and encourage breeding. Many things come into play when
raising seahorses, including, ultraviolet sterilization and micro
filtration of water, varying light spectrums, culture of
zooplankton and algae as food, enrichment of food fed to the
seahorses, and hourly feeding rituals. Keeping seahorses is a
time- consuming and costly project. However, at the Calvert Marine
Museum we have the time, ability, and funds to produce a new
generation of juvenile seahorses that may not have otherwise had a
chance to survive, and for now, these seahorses will be shared
with other institutions that need seahorses for their exhibits. In
time, after collaboration with other aquariums around the world
that are involved in seahorse research, scientists hope that
aquaculture of some seahorse species will ease the strain on
natural populations. The research that we do here helps provide
information on the best way to do that. So please help out a
seahorse -- let it go! If you want to be more involved, volunteer
at your local museum or aquarium and learn more about them.
How
you can help...
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Avoid buying dried seahorses as souvenirs.
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Avoid buying seahorses as pets. They are difficult to keep and
require large amounts of food.
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Do not remove a seahorse from its home. Taking a pregnant male
could mean the lives of 301 seahorses.
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Help protect seagrasses, mangroves, coral, and estuarine
habitats where seahorses live.
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Adopt a seahorse or volunteer at your local aquarium to help
with research.
If you would like more
information about how you can help the seahorses in your area,
please call (410) 326-2042, ext 33, or
email
Seahorse Facts
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Seahorses
are fish.
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Seahorses belong to the family “Syngnathidae” which means
fused jaws.
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There are thirty-four
seahorse species, only one is found
in the Chesapeake Bay.
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Seahorses have a head like a horse, a tail like a monkey,
a pouch like a kangaroo, independently moving eyes like a
chameleon, and fins like a fish.
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Seahorses are masters of camouflage and can change color
in a matter of minutes.
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The Lined Seahorse is listed as vulnerable on the Red List
of Threatened Animals by the Conservation Union.
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At least twenty million seahorses are taken a year, the
majority used for traditional Chinese medicine. Several
hundred thousand more are exported annually for home and
public aquariums, and a similar number are sold as dried
souvenirs.
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Male seahorses get pregnant. A courtship dance can last up
to nine hours.
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Seahorses have no teeth and no stomach.
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A two-week-old seahorse can eat 3000-4000 brine shrimp in
a day.
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Seahorses are monogamous, picking one mate for life. Daily
greeting rituals include the male and female coming
together each morning, dancing and changing color,
twirling around with linked tails, and then separating for
the rest of the day.
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At least forty nations around the world are involved in
buying and selling seahorses, from Ecuador to Italy, from
Mozambique to the USA. The largest importers are those
with large resident Chinese populations. The largest known
exporters are Thailand, Vietnam, India, and the
Philippines
Related
Articles BUGEYE TIMES:
CMM Reaches Out With Seahorses
Hippocampus: The Strange Little Seahorse
Other Related
Links:
Project Seahorse
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