Seahorse Study

Seahorse's physiology

A lot of people don't think seahorses are truly fishes. And that's not surprising. Seahorses are so much different from other fishes in every way. They have a horse like head, a a prehensile tail like a monkey and independently mobile eyes like a chameleon. But still, they are fishes.

• Seahorses are one of the most unstudied species. There are 57 types of seahorses known now, and 30 of them are in the Red book.
• Seahorses swim vertically. They propel themselves with a small fin on their backs and steer with small pectoral fins on their heads, due to the lacked a gene associated with pelvic fins. Their fin can flutter up to 35 times per second. They have even smaller fins located near the back of their head and are used for steering.
• Seahorses' diet is carnivore. They mostly eat tiny fish and plankton. They don't have teeth so they attach themselfs with their tail to somekind of sea grass and coral and suck up food that drift by.Seahorses also have no stomac. Food pases through their digestive system so fast that they must eat almost constantly to stay alive.
• Their life spin can be from 1 to 5 years
• They mostly live in reefs
• Their size can be from 1.5 to 35 cm depending on species
• Although there not so many of underwater predators that would eat seahorses (because they are too bony and small) if there is one seahorses hide by imitatimg the colour of seaweeds.
• It is believed that seahorses evolved from pipefishes. Yeah, they don't seem to look like their closests relatives.
• Maybe the most shocking for you will be that seahorses are the only species where males get pregnant. When male seahorse gets pregn ant there is only two weeks between mating and parturition (birth). Male pregnancy gives female opportunity to make more eggs and so reproduce quicker. When mating, the female seahorse releases up to 50 eggs into a pouch on the male’s abdomen. The male seahorse carries the eggs in his pouch until they hatch, then releases fully formed, miniature seahorses into the water. As little as 5 or as many as 1,572 young can be born.

Seahorses' Mentality

There is other side that makes seahorses unique not only from the other fishes, but from many other living creatures on our planet.
It is their feelings and emotions.

• Scientists concluded that the most species of seahorses are monogamous and they can stay together and reamain faithful for each other during several breeding seasons. While male seahorse is pregnant female visits him, holds his fin, they engage snout-on-snout kissing. The other thing uncluded in their daily greetings, and is not necessary to be during the pregnancy, is somekind of courtship dance in which they do pirouette and change colours for each other. This dance can last from a few minutes to 8 hours. All this proves that the most seahorses are mate for life and how feelings for each other i.e. fall in love.