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Denise Pygmy Seahorse
Hippocampus denise
11.3261, 124.096
Field Notes
Description:
Pygmy seahorses are among the most well camouflaged species in the oceans, being very difficult to spot amongst the gorgonian coral they live in.
Hippocampus denise is tiny, growing only to a total length of 1.5 cm (5/8 inch). It is orange and resembles the pygmy seahorse, Hippocampus bargibanti, though its tubercles are less distinct. Some individuals have better developed tubercles and are darker in colour. Males and females differ significantly in body shape.
Habitat:
They are usually solitary, though they may be found in pairs or small groups on their host gorgonians, usually colonies of Annella reticulata, Muricella or Echinogorgia, in depths of up to 84m.
Notes:
Like all seahorses, it is the Males that carries the Eggs in his pouch.
During courting/mating, the Female will deposit her Eggs into the pouch of the Males where the Eggs will be fertilized. The Males will look after the Eggs and during this period, the Females will 'visits' the Males every day, usually at dawn and they will perform 'courtship dance', after which, the Female will move away to another part of the Gorgonian Seafan.
The Male will give birth to the babies, a few at a time, by squeezing his pouch and watching the new babies either float away to settle down in other Seafans or the same Seafan.
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