By:Jennifer Briscoe

Hippocampus hudsonius. ~Family:Syngnathidae~Hippo meaning horse

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and campos meaning sea animal in Greek. ~There are around 40 different species of seahorses

They all range in size from6 - 12 inches when full grown. They will live for about 4 years.

males take charge of the eggs, which are placed in an abdominal pouch and remain there until they

hatch. Seahorses mate during the full moon. They normally go through a series of courtship rituals that lasts several days before they mate. The courtship ritual involves such things as color changes and synchronised swimming. The female makes between 200 - 600 eggs which are a pinkish color. The size of the eggs varies from .5 to 1.5 millimeters, depending on the species. The female then deposits them in the males brood pouch where he fertilizes them and lets them grow. The developing embryos are oxygenated and maintained for 3 - 6 weeks. When the male gives birth, he may actually experience birth pain. When they hatch, the baby sea ponies are about 1 centimeter long. When the baby seahorses are born, they must fend for themselves because the male will not care for them. Sea-horses have low reproductive rates and their populations are easily disrupted.

About 30 species are found in various warm to temperate seas. All keep near the shore, often developing in brackish water. They are typically found at depths between .5 - 30 meters. They live in warm or temperate salt water off the coasts of Australia and the United States. They make their homes in reefs and seaweed.. In the reefs and seaweed, they have good protection from predators as well as a plenty of twigs to anchor themselves to. coral reef, sea grass, and mangrove habitats

Sea horses are killed for Chinese medicines, the aquarium trade, and as tourist curios. Countless sea-horses are also lost every year with the destruction of their coral reef, sea grass, and mangrove habitats. More than 20 million sea horses are collected each year causing some sea-horse populations to crash by 50% over the last five years. approximately 35 species of sea-horses may soon be endangered