Sea Notes

Our Weedy Sea Dragons are Carrying Eggs!

For the first time ever at the Monterey Bay Aquarium, one of our weedy sea dragons (Phyllopteryx taeniolatus) is carrying eggs. In late April, aquarists saw the animals performing a courtship dance. When they came in the morning of April 27, the male was carrying about 30 eggs. (Male seahorses and sea dragons carry the babies, not females.)

At first we didn’t think the eggs were viable. But a few weeks later teeny tiny eyes were peering at aquarists from some of the eggs. We’re not sure how many of the eggs are currently viable, but it’s still a positive sign, and we remain hopeful we'll have baby "weedies" someday soon! Regardless, it’s another success story for our Secret Lives of Seahorses special exhibition; all eight seahorse species on exhibit have now had babies at the Aquarium. Two pipefish species on exhibit have had babies, and one seahorse species not on exhibit has had babies. In the U.S., only three other institutions have had weedy sea dragons reproduce: Aquarium of the Pacific, Georgia Aquarium and Tennessee Aquarium. 

 Unique Life History

Unlike seahorses, who carry eggs in a bulging brood pouch, sea dragons affix them to the undersides of their tails for the duration of the pregnancy. After courtship, the female pushes the eggs onto a soft patch of tissue on the male’s tail. This tissue then surrounds the fragile eggs and holds them in place.

Not all eggs make the transfer; aquarists found some on the bottom of the exhibit. But a large number did make it, and are now clearly visible on the tail of the new father.

What’s Next

In the viable eggs, tiny sea dragon embryos will develop for a period of about five to six weeks. Before then, aquarists will “isolate the male in a small floating cage within the exhibit,” says Jonelle Verdugo, associate curator of fish and invertebrates. “The male can still swim around, but we want to isolate and protect the babies as they hatch.” Once the process starts, she expects all the babies to hatch over the course of a few days. They’ll be about three centimeters at birth.

Once the young sea dragons are born, they’ll be moved behind the scenes to ensure they get enough food.  They would most likely get lost if left on exhibit. Then, if all goes well, they’ll come back on exhibit after four to six months.

A Learning Experience

Raising tiny sea dragons is a fine art, and Jonelle stresses that there are a lot of things that could go wrong. “There’s a high probability that some of the eggs will drop off the male’s tail or that babies will be born not fully developed,” she says. “We don’t expect all the eggs to be there after five weeks.

“We’re really excited to have come this far, but we’re taking it day to day. The fact that this happened means that our sea dragons are doing well. But it’s a learning experience. We hoped this would happen, but we were still caught off guard when it actually did!”

Secret Lives of (Shortsnout) Seahorses

For the first time ever, the Monterey Bay Aquarium is displaying shortsnout seahorses (Hippocampus breviceps). Seventeen of these tiny seahorses (up to three inches) were added to the Secret Lives of Seahorses special exhibition in late August. You can find them in the “Giving Birth” section of the exhibit in the free-standing, round display.

The Aquarium acquired shortsnouts when the exhibit opened in early 2009, but they are only now being shown, according to Jonelle Verdugo, associate curator of fish and invertebrates. Those on display include those original shortsnouts, plus some that were born behind the scenes. And there may be more to come: three dozen additional shortsnouts were born behind the scenes in mid-September.

A Shout Out to Shortsnouts

The Aquarium kept and reared shortsnouts behind the scenes from 2004 until 2007 to learn more about the species in preparation for the Secret Lives of Seahorses, but these animals were never shown to the public.  “If I had to pick a favorite seahorse, it would be this one,” says Jonelle. “I always looked forward to having them on display.”

Shortsnouts are dark colored with purplish browns, reds and yellows. They often grow “cirri”—small, hornlike appendages that serve as camouflage—around the eyes, neck and abdomen areas. Mature males fill a prominent “brood pouch” when trying to attract females, and this can often be seen on exhibit. When in motion, a fanlike dorsal fin moves in a blur, propelling the seahorse forward, and other fins near the ears provide steering.

Native to the waters of Australia, shortsnouts are found in large groups, in sea grass beds and among algae-covered rocky reefs. Unfortunately, these nearshore habitats face a range of threats, from development to pollution. (Learn more about seahorse conservation.)

“I’m really excited to get to display these seahorses after so many years,” says Jonelle. “They’re so small, at first they can be hard to find. But the more you look, the more you see.”

Save Us, Sea Creatures!

Given the almost endless stream of insults we're hurling at the oceans and marine life, isn't it time we recognize how much we have to gain from these marvelous creatures? For concrete, bottom-line thinkers, that's the selfish, anthropocentric "we" -- forget appreciating the intrinsic majesty of marine life. I'm talking saving our lives, and saving our planet.

Take humpback whales. Cruise ships may run them over and kill them, but scientist Frank Fish found inspiration for more-efficient wind turbines from the shape of humpback flippers. As a result, clean wind energy could be more profitable to bring to market from Whalepower, a company using the humpback-inspired design.

How about seahorses? Researchers in Australia are studying the development of the seahorse eye for clues that may help reverse macular degeneration -- a disease that causes progressive blindness as people age.

Living corals, so vulnerable to climate change as oceans warm and turn more acidic, may also hold a solution to the threat. The Moss Landing Cement Co., just up the road from Monterey Bay Aquarium, believes it can produce an eco-friendly cement by mimicking the way corals build their skeletons -- in this case, by combining seawater with carbon dioxide from a neighboring power plant.

And what about kelp, the humble seaweed? Like the humpback-inspired turbine, a new bioWave turbine design is based on the way that marine plants sway back and forth with the pulsing of the waves.

There are so many more innovations just like these, and likely others to come as we learn more about how animals and plants have adapted to life in the ocean. The aquarium's sharing a number of stories in a daily auditorium program, Whales to Windmills: Inventions Inspired by the Sea.

The trick now is to preserve them -- and their homes -- so we can reap the benefits.

The Pygmy Seahorse, a Mighty Mite

For your enjoyment, a video tribute to the pygmy seahorse -- tiniest of the seahorse species. They're so small that new species are still being discovered.

We've blogged a lot about seahorses. And you can get a closer look at 15 species of seahorses, sea dragons and pipefishes in the Monterey Bay Aquarium special exhibition, "The Secret Lives of Seahorses."

Meanwhile, pygmy seahorses, courtesy of Jean-Michel Cousteau and his Ocean Futures Society:

Saving Seahorses, Conserving Corals

Good news today for ocean wildlife, here at home in the United States and overseas in Cambodia.

In the U.S., Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced a new pilot program -- backed up with money -- to protect coral reefs in Puerto Rico from the impacts of sediment and nutrient runoff. Similar pilot projects are planned to protect reefs in Florida, Hawaii, the U.S. Virgin Islands and in Pacific Islands under U.S. jurisdiction.

The announcement came at a meeting of the U.S. Coral Reef Task Force in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

A world away, Marine Conservation Cambodia is celebrating success in establishing the largest community managed marine area in the country to help restore habitat essential for Cambodia's rich marine life -- including seahorses.

As is true everywhere, community involvement is essential. So too is government action, and part of the success story is action by the Cambodian government to prohibit fishing for or trading of seahorses.

You don't have to go to Cambodia to help seahorses. If you're a California resident, go to our Take Action page and urge Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to support creation of marine protected areas in southern California that will protect essential habitat for many species, including Pacific seahorses.

Pegasus?

First it was a falling (sea) star landing on the head of one of our employees. Now a flying seahorse.

Report out of Weymouth, Dorset, England tells of a long-snouted seahorse discovered lying on the lawn. Seems likely it was dropped by a passing gull. Karen Warr, pictured, picked it up in a slice of fish, popped it in a bowl of tepid water and rushed the living seahorse to a nearby Sea Life Centre, where it's apparently making a recovery. They've named it Pegasus.

Our sea star fell just a few yards inland. This seahorse made it three miles from the sea.

What's with these gulls? On the other hand, better not to complain given what they USUALLY drop on us from the sky!

Seahorse Sleuths

What threats face seahorses in the wild? How are scientists and conservation organizations teaming up to learn which species are being caught for use in traditional medicine -- and finding ways to establish sustainable seahorse fisheries so these intriguing animals will be with us for a long time?

You can learn this and more in "Seahorse Sleuths," created by KQED public broadcasting's QUEST science program. There are also great links to our new special exhibition, The Secret Lives of Seahorses, the conservation organization Project Seahorse, and much more -- including a web-only feature on our work raising seahorses for the exhibit. (You'll have to go here, though, to become a Facebook friend of Herbie Hippocampus, the Pacific seahorse.) And there are other good places to engage in protecting seahorses.

QUEST on KQED Public Media.

Stand Up, Seahorse!

If you've wondered why seahorses look the way they do -- with an upright posture they share with humans but few other animals -- wonder no longer.

Researchers in Australia say it all happened 20 to 25 million years ago, when habitat lush with sea grass beds developed in waters between Australia and Indonesia -- habitat perfect for vertical fishes to grasp with curling tails.

 Dr. Peter Teske, a postdoctoral fellow at the Macquarie University Molecular Ecology Lab in Sydney, told Discovery News that going upright would have been ideal for a weak-swimming animal living in this new environment. It also would have help seahorses camouflage themselves from predators -- and from potential prey.

He and co-author Luciano Beheregaray were able to pinpoint the timing by building a family tree for members of the Hippocampus genus (true seahorses) and the related genus Idiotropiscis, which includes the southern little pipehorse that is very similar in appearance.

They published their findings in the journal Royal Society Biology Letters.

The two lines diverged about 20 to 25 million years ago, the researchers concluded, isolating ancestral seahorses in a shallow, warm seas and a grassy sea bed -- new habitat to which they adapted well.

As you can tell from a visit to The Secret Lives of Seahorses, these fishes still prefer sheltered habitats like sea grass beds, mangroves and coral reefs.

Jennifer Viegas, who wrote the Discovery News article, includes some of her favorite seahorse photos in her "Born Animal" blog, as well as a piano solo called Seahorse by composer/pianist Margie Adam.

Secret Seahorse Smuggling

In our newest special exhibition, The Secret Lives of Seahorses, our visitors learn that a significant threat to seahorses is the curio trade. Live seahorses are caught and killed to be used as decorative objects for our homes. Dried seahorses are also used in traditional medicines.

This week, during a routine inspection at a U.S. seaport, a box marked "Candy" turned out not to be so sweet. It was in fact a large and illegal shipment of seahorses. You can read more about this story here.

We hope you will enjoy the stunning images on our website, and come see the live animals on display in our new exhibit -- and help us spread the word about why we need to keep seahorses in the sea.

You can also get regular updates from Herbie Hippocampus, a Pacific seahorse at the aquarium by becoming his friend on Facebook. Herbie has the inside scoop on life in the exhibit, as well as keeping track on what's new in conservation of the oceans. Perhaps once he gets pregnant he'll have less time on his hands....er... fins!

Seahorses!

Several seahorse items to share today. First, we're getting excited about the April 6 opening of "The Secret Lives of Seahorses" at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. The exhibit's really taking shape and guaranteed it's going to be fun to visit.

As part of the pre-opening activity, we launched a contest today in which a lucky winner and nine friends will enjoy a "Seahorse Soiree" in the exhibit. Details and a preview of "The Secret Lives of Seahorses" are available on our website. The contest ends April 30.

You can get deeper insights into lives of seahorses as a Facebook friend of Herbie Hippocampus, who's helping us share stories of seahorses -- from the inside.

The exhibit will feature amazing animals, including leafy sea dragons, dragon pipefish, ribbon pipehorses and potbelly seahorses, to name just a few.

It's also a place to learn what each of us can do to protect seahorses in the wild -- from choosing sustainable seafood (because seahorse habitat can be destroyed by thoughtless aquaculture developments and indiscriminate fishing practices) to supporting creation of marine protected areas that safeguard the coral reefs, mangrove forests and eelgrass beds where seahorses and their kin make their homes. California's only native seahorse, the Pacific seahorse, could benefit from this kind of protection.

We've also posted a new seahorse video on YouTube; check it out: