Seahorse Charms....

• Seahorses gained international protection on May 15, 2004

• They do not have scales; their skin is covered with bony plates.




• The small dorsal fins propel it through the water in an upright position, while it beats them back and forth, almost as fast as a humming bird flapping its wings.



• 25 million seahorses a year are now being traded around the world - 64% more than in the mid-1990s - and environmentalists are increasingly concerned that the booming trade in seahorses is putting the creatures at risk.

• Seahorses can come in patterns like “zebra stripes” and spots. Seahorses change color to blend in with their surroundings. Their ability to change color is even stronger than the well-known chameleon.

• Seahorses usually mate under a full moon. During mating, the seahorses utter musical sounds. They make small clicks by moving two parts of their skull against each other.


• The pectoral fins control turning and steering. When resting, the seahorse curls its tail around seaweed, to keep it from floating away... :)
  


• Seahorses are members of the bony fish. Seahorses are considered bony fishes because they have bony skeletons and bodies that are protected by strong external plates.
  

• Seahorse natural predators are crabs, tuna, skates and rays.
  


• Seahorses cannot curl their tails backwards.

What makes seahorses vulnerable?

1. Each pair of seahorses commonly produces 1,000 young per year. This is a low birth rate compared to other fish. For example, cod commonly produce 200,000 eggs per spawning. This means that seahorse populations are slower to recover.
2. Seahorses can take a year to mature, but juveniles are popular in the market as home aquarium fishes or in patent medicines. Because of this, young seahorses are fished before they can reproduce.
3. Seahorses move slowly and generally stay in the same area. This enables a skilled fisher to make a survey, find an area where seahorses live and eliminate them. Repopulation of the areas is very slow.

-Salha-