Seahorses are fish from the bony group. They are part of the family Syngnathidae and the genus Hippocampus. In our country, it is possible to find two species of this animal: long-snouted seahorse (h. reidi) It is short snout (H. erectus).
Topics of this article
→ Characteristics of seahorses
Seahorses live in shallow, tropical or temperate waters, being found in estuarine environments, reefs, bays and mangroves. These fish show elongated head, that reminds a lot of a horse, and eyes that move independently. Your mouth is tubular and has no teeth, for this reason, this fish feeds by sucking. Generally, the seahorse waits for some small animal to pass by to suck it up.
The body of the seahorse is small and very resistant, formed by a series of bony rings., and measures around 15 cm to 18 cm. These fish have fins, which allow them to swim, and are active during the day, despite their low mobility. They have pectoral fins just behind the operculum (plate that protects the gills), dorsal fins, which are used for propulsion, and an anal fin. They also have a prehensile tail., which is often used to grip the substrate.
Seahorses have a very interesting feature which is the ability to change color, just like chameleons. This ability helps protect against predators (camouflage), in addition to helping during reproduction, since seahorses tend to intensify their color when they are in the reproductive season.
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→ reproduction of seahorses
Seahorses have a monogamous behavior, which ends up interfering with the reproductive rate when one member of the couple is removed. In addition, they have as a striking feature the fact that the male is responsible for generating the offspring. At the time of copulation, the female seahorse transfers her oocytes into the male’s brood pouch.
Gestation time varies from species to species and is also related to water temperature. During birth, the male violently wriggles to release the pups. More than 100 pups are born each pregnancy, each one measuring 1 cm on average. Despite being small and fragile, puppies are born completely independent.
→ endangered animals
Seahorses are highly endangered animals, mainly because of their wide commercial exploitation and the constant degradation of the area in which they live. These animals are often sold to be placed in aquariums or for decoration purposes, or even for the production of medicines. We also cannot forget the accidental capture of these fish in fishing gear, an important factor that contributes to their decline.
By Ma. Vanessa Sardinha dos Santos