Seahorse Reproduction - BIRTH WITH VIDEO

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2024 Author: Carl Johnson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 06:19

The scientific name of the seahorse is Hippocampus sp., comes from the Greek hippos meaning horse and kampos meaning sea monster. Although it is not necessary to observe them much to realize that seahorses are not, not even remotely, sea monsters. On the contrary, they are incredibly beautiful and peaceful animals, although they are very territorial. Especially the male when he carries the eggs inside. It is for this fact that, on our site, we want to tell you about the reproduction of the seahorse

Seahorse Characteristics

Seahorses are marine fish belonging to the family Syngnathidae, together with needle fish. They are very rare animals and each of their characteristics seems to be almost unique to these beautiful animals.

First of all, they have the jaws fused into one, i.e. the upper and lower jaws are glued together, hence it has a "trumpet" shaped mouth. This feature does not prevent it from being a voracious predator. It feeds on small crustaceans that are part of the zooplankton. In order to hunt them, their eyes move independently, like those of a chameleon, so they can see their prey well, since they are animals with little mobility or, rather, poor swimmers

Despite being a fish, they do not have scales, instead, their body is covered with bony plates. They have a dorsal fin, which is what drives them to move upright, something exclusive to seahorses.

Seahorses have to feed constantly, as they have no stomach and food is quickly digested. Seahorse respiration is like fish respiration, through gills Lastly, regarding seahorse reproduction, it is the male the one who carries and cares for the developing eggs, rather than the female.

Reproduction of the seahorse - Characteristics of the seahorse

Seahorse fertilization

Before fertilization, each pair of seahorses spend several days immersed in a courtship dance ritual. They are not monogamous animals, they constantly change partners. To distinguish the male from the female, we will look at the belly, that of the males has a smooth and bulky appearance, ideal for the function it performs, on the other hand, that of the female is rougher and more pointed.

After courtship, during copulation, both parents unite their cloacae and the female introduces around 1,500 eggs inside the male without fertilize, which will be fertilized by the male inside it. Unlike other marine animals, the seahorse has an internal fertilization, the eggs are fertilized once they are inside the male.

How are seahorses born?

After 45 days of gestation, the male, through muscular contractionsthat shake his entire body, expels the young fully formed. He may need some time for the birth of all the seahorses waiting inside him to take place. After birth, the little ones are abandoned by the father as soon as they go outside.

As a curiosity we can point out that very few individuals reach the adult stage, hence the female produces so many eggs.

Seahorse Habitat

Seahorses are marine animals from warm waters, such as tropical seas. They mainly inhabit the waters surrounding the American continent. They prefer shallow waters, with a lot of vegetation and places to hide, since they do not have any active anti-predator mechanism, they only camouflage themselves with their surroundings. Some species of seahorse are even able to change color Others have extensions on their bodies that resemble algae.

The coral reefs, the mangroves and other types of wetlands, are the ideal place for these animals, the problem is that the Wetlands are being threatened all over the world, since 1900, 64% of wetlands have disappeared. The waters in which they live have little movement, if a seahorse ends up in the open sea it is very likely that it will die from exhaustion