Seahorse encyclopedia for children. Miracle Fish: Seahorse
The seahorse is amazing and unusual representative tropical reservoirs. His appearance and some features of life differ from representatives marine environment. Among connoisseurs of such individuals, a common question is: is a seahorse a fish or an animal? The answer to it is simple - the individual belongs to the animal kingdom and the class of Ray-finned fish. After many years of research, scientists have proven that the animal is a close relative of the pipefish.
The seahorse belongs to the animal kingdom and the class of ray-finned fish
General information
Since the animal is considered a highly modified species of pipefish, it belongs to the order Aciliformes. The unusual body of the skate really resembles a chess piece. Perhaps this was the reason to give the animal such a name.
In its natural environment, the seahorse can be found in subtropical and tropical waters around the world. Salty and maximum pure water - best condition for his comfortable stay. Dimensions seahorse small and range from 2 to 30−32 cm. It is quite rare to find individuals that reach 35 cm in length.
There are many theories about where the seahorse lives, as it has been seen in different parts of the world. Most often the animal can be found in water bodies of Australia, sometimes England. Sometimes individual species are found in the Azov and Black Seas. It prefers to stay close to the bottom and uses algae as cover, camouflaging itself in their thickets and changing color according to the color they are painted in.
The seahorse prefers to be at the bottom of the reservoir and hide in the algae The body of the fish is covered with a very hard and bony shell. which protects against negative impact environment. Often the body has spines of different lengths and shapes, some are covered with long ribbon-like processes of different colors. Surprisingly, this fish has no scales. A special feature of the structure will be the head, since it is very firmly attached to the body and does not rotate. If the horse wants to look back, it turns its whole body or bulges its eyes.
Each eye moves separately from the other. This feature is also inherent in chameleons, which can rotate each eye separately in a circle. There is some debate about how long seahorses live, as they usually live up to 4 years, but in some cases you can find representatives who live up to 6 years.
Another feature of the fish is its vertical position in the water. This is possible due to the fact that the swim bladder is divided into two sections by a thin septum and allows it to maintain a vertical position.
Popular types
There are about 50 species of seahorses in their natural habitat. Each of them differs in size, appearance and some structural features. The most common are the following:
In Southern Japan you can find dwarf individuals. They are painted in light colors with purple stripes or spots. They camouflage well as corals. They have a body length of no more than 3 cm. They prefer not to descend to a depth of more than 40 meters.
Nutritional Features
Amazing fish are one of the few species that are not the hunt is on from other residents depths of the sea. It's all about the structure of the individuals, in which spines and bone plates predominate. Large predatory fish or other hunters cannot digest such food. The only one who can eat the skate is the sand crab, whose stomach is able to digest what it eats.
The skates themselves feed on plankton.
The favorite delicacy of these unusual fish is baby crayfish and other small fish. Thanks to the amazing ability of the skate to camouflage itself and remain motionless for several hours, it successfully hunts them. It waits for the moment when the victim approaches and sucks it along with water into its mouth.
U seahorses no stomach. That's why they are very gluttonous Despite their small size, seahorses are very voracious and are capable of hunting and eating for up to 10 hours a day. a large number of small individuals. This is due to the fact that individuals do not have a stomach, so food passes through all sections quite quickly digestive system. If you keep them in captivity, Several feeding rules should be followed:
- Captive-bred specimens are capable of feeding on dead daphnia, shrimp and other small specimens, as well as dry fish food.
- The food should only be fresh.
- Individuals should be fed regularly, but avoid overeating, as in captivity this can cause a variety of diseases.
It is possible to install a variety of feeders in which food is placed. A few days after installing such an innovation, the individuals themselves will understand that this is a new place for eating. Several long rods or sticks should be installed near the feeders so that the skates can cling to them while eating.
Reproduction of seahorses
Unusual fish lead a sedentary lifestyle and are in one place almost all the time. In case of danger, they can develop decent speed or attach themselves to large fish so that they carry them to a safer place.
The fish is faithful and throughout his life prefers to be close to one partner. Only in rare cases does a female or male change her life partner. The most incredible thing will be the fact that in a married couple the male bears the offspring. After the start of spawning, the couple performs a certain mating dance for a long time. After this, the female transfers the eggs to a special pocket, which is located on the male’s belly.
After 2 weeks of gestation, the fry emerge from the pocket, are already independent and immediately set off for free swimming. Different types of skates differ in their fertility and can lay from 5 to 2000 eggs at a time.
Breeding skates in captivity is quite difficult and an aquarium hobbyist will not be able to cope with it. Despite the fact that individuals are quite popular among aquarists, keeping them in an artificial environment has many nuances. If the conditions are not met, they begin to get sick and die.
Currently seahorses different types are on the verge of extinction. This is due to the fact that in many countries fish is considered an expensive delicacy and is caught on an industrial scale. In some regions of Australia and Asia, skates are used as raw materials for the preparation of various ointments and medications.
ABOUT healing properties Mankind has known the meat of this amazing fish since ancient times and included it in many dishes. However then amateur fishing could not significantly reduce the number of individuals. Now, catching has really become a problem, as it is gradually leading to the complete disappearance of the species.
Of the inhabitants underwater world The most unusual, but known to everyone, are seahorses. They belong to the needle family of the order Acicularis. The fact is that they are fellow fish called pipefish, whose bodies are retracted, narrow and long. The largest seahorses are called dragons, and in total there are about 50 species of seahorses.
After analyzing the structure of the seahorse, scientists found that it originated from the pipefish fish 13 million years ago. In appearance, these species are very similar, only the needle is straightened and the ridge is curved.
Description of the underwater "horse"
At first glance, it seems that the pipit is not a fish at all. If you look at the photo of a seahorse, it looks like a knight in chess pieces. The silhouette of this unusual fish is curved, the abdomen stands out forward, and the back is rounded. The front part of the skate's body is narrow and curved so that it resembles the neck and head of a horse. The front part of the head is extended, the fish has bulging eyes. A long tail wrapped in a spiral. The tail is quite flexible, which allows the seahorse to wrap itself around seaweed.
Its body is covered with a wide variety of bumps, thickenings and outgrowths. On their small body there are bone scales that act as armor; they are bright and iridescent. Such a skate shell cannot be penetrated; it is very strong and protects against sea predators.
Their colors vary in variety, but are still monochromatic. The color of the skates' covering depends on their habitat; they acquire the most similar color to best imitate the surface on which they live. So, for example, if a seahorse is among the corals, then most likely it is red or bright yellow or purple. Pipits that live in seaweed environments are brown, yellow, or green in color. They also tend to change shade when their environment changes.
Sea Horses small sizes, the smallest start from 2 cm, and the largest reach 20 cm.
Habitat
Seahorses live underwater, mainly in the tropics and subtropics. This means that they live all over the planet.
Usually the fish live among seaweed or corals in shallow waters. Skates are inactive and inactive. Most of the time they are in a position with their tail caught on a branch of coral or seaweed. More large fish- sea dragons - cannot attach to aquatic vegetation in this way.
Lifestyle
Skates swim a little, not far from their usual place and slowly, while keeping their body vertical - this is one of the main differences from other fish. In an emergency, if spooked, they may swim into horizontal position. When in danger, the seahorse quickly clings to coral or algae with its tail and freezes. He hangs upside down motionless. The skate can remain in this position for a very long time.
They also differ from other inhabitants of the seabed by their meek and calm character. These fish are not aggressive towards others. But they still relate to predatory fish, since they feed on various small organisms - plankton. They track the smallest mollusks, crustaceans, larvae of other fish and other invertebrates with their rotating eyes. When the prey comes close to the seahorse, it sucks it into its mouth, while strongly inflating its cheeks. This little fish is insatiable and can feed for about 10 hours a day.
Reproduction of seahorses
It should also be noted that these fish are monogamous. They say about seahorses that these fish live in married pairs all their lives. But it still happens when they change their partners. Another key feature is that male seahorses carry the eggs instead of females. During the mating season, skates change: the female grows an ovipositor in the form of a tube, and the male develops a pouch with thickened folds in the tail area. Before fertilization, the partners undergo a rather lengthy mating dance. This is touching courtship on the part of the male. It was also revealed that the male seahorse seems to adapt to the female, changing the color of his coat to match her.
The female places eggs in the male's pouch. So the male carries the eggs for about two weeks. There is a small hole in the bag through which the fry are born. As for sea dragons, they do not have a pouch. They hatch eggs on the very stem of the tail. The number of eggs varies among different species of skates. So, some may have 5 fry, while others may have 1500 eggs.
The birth itself is painful for the male. It happens that the outcome of the birth of fry is fatal for the skate.
Experiment
One day scientists conducted an experiment. A pair of males and a pair of females were placed in one aquarium to breed seahorses. After all the traditional courtship, the female laid her eggs to one of the males for further fertilization. The fertilized male was removed to a nearby aquarium. The remaining male tried to court this female, but all his efforts were in vain. She did not pay attention to him and did not try to lay eggs in his pouch. When they finally returned the male back to the aquarium with the female, she again chose him to fertilize her offspring. So he was removed again and again after the eggs were placed on him. Despite the fact that the second male continued to court her, the female seahorse still chose her previous male to reproduce. The experiment with fish was done 6 times - everything remained unchanged.
Fry
Of a thousand newborn fry, only 5% survive and continue labor.
The newly hatched fry are already completely independent and move away from their parents, choosing a new habitat for themselves.
Skates in the Red Book
Nowadays, most species of seahorses are rare, and some are completely disappearing from the seabed. After all, 30 species are listed in the Red Book. And all because the seahorse reproduces in small quantities. A ban has been introduced on the catch of skates. But despite this, people catch these fish in huge quantities for cooking. Gourmets consider the fillets of these fish to be truly a delicacy and sell them at incredible prices. Skates are also used in oriental medicine; various medicines for diseases are made from them. skin and asthma. Because of the unusual beautiful view skates are dried and sold in large quantities as souvenirs. People deliberately bend the tail of the skate in reverse side so that its shape becomes like the letter S. Such fish do not exist in nature.
Water pollution also plays a large role in the extinction of most species of seahorses. After all, every year more and more waste is thrown into the oceans and chemical substances, processed by industries. Environmental accidents and other pollution affect the extinction of corals and algae, which are so necessary for the life of seahorses.
Breeding seahorses at home
Despite the desire of many aquarium owners to have such an interesting fish at home, the pipit is very demanding for breeding at home. He is susceptible various diseases and is too picky about feed.
Rare species of skates have a very difficult time staying in an aquarium. They may become stressed or get sick. Therefore, when breeding fish at home, it is necessary to create conditions close to their natural habitat. If you carefully approach the breeding of a seahorse, it will delight its owner for 3-4 years.
Aquarium
It is necessary to monitor the temperature of the water in the aquarium. The optimal water temperature for them is approximately 23-25 degrees Celsius. For hot days, you need to take care of installing an aquarium split system or turn on a fan nearby. Otherwise, hot air has a detrimental effect on these fish, and they will simply suffocate.
In order for a seahorse to feel comfortable at home in an aquarium, it is necessary to monitor the quality of the water in it. The water in the aquarium should not contain ammonia or phosphates. You need to put corals and algae on the bottom. Various grottoes, jugs, castles and other products made from artificial materials are also welcome.
Fish nutrition
Seahorses eat often and a lot, so they need to be provided with 4-5 meals a day. Frozen meat of crustaceans, shrimp and other invertebrate mollusks is suitable for food. They also readily eat moths and daphnia.
Content Features
The seahorse is very demanding to care for, so owners of such royal fish need to be patient and persevering. Here are some features you need to be aware of:
Neighbors in the aquarium
Next door you can place calm fish or invertebrates in the aquarium. The fish should be small, slow and careful. Ideal neighbors for seahorses would be blennies and gobies. They get along well with a snail, which does not sting corals and cleans the aquarium perfectly. You can also consider living stones as inhabitants of the “house” of needle-shaped fish. These are small pieces of limestone that have been in warm tropical waters for some time and are inhabited by various living organisms. All new neighbors must be healthy to avoid infecting the seahorses.
The seahorse is an unusual animal that resembles a small magic horse ranging in size from 1.5 to 30 centimeters. It has family ties with needle fish. The inhabitant of salty tropical waters is also found off the coast of Eastern Canada and Great Britain. Selected species exist in fresh waters. The sea dweller is of constant interest to children and adults.
Appearance
Sea Horse - Interesting Facts for children about appearance. Movement involves a small fin on the back, oscillating up to 35 times per second. Rowing with two gill fins maintains vertical balance. They are weak swimmers, isolated dwarf species move at a speed of one and a half meters per hour. The up-and-down spiral movement ensures a change in the volume of the swim bladder.
They are able to change color depending on the surrounding plants, therefore they are invisible in aquatic environment. The body is covered with a bony shell instead of scales. Like tropical birds, they have a rich color palette with stripes and specks. They are difficult to distinguish from corals.
Observation is carried out by a pair of eyes capable of looking in opposite directions.
Beautiful representatives of fish breathe with the help of gills, have a swim bladder located throughout the body, which makes it possible to position themselves vertically in the water space.
A peculiar tail helps to attach to the fins and make long journeys “astride” other fish.
Behavior
Interesting facts about seahorses - behavior. Due to the peculiarities of the digestive system, they need constant nutrition, which enters the body with water. The food is not only plankton, crustaceans, shrimp, larvae, but also small fish. There are no teeth or stomach; absorption occurs through the proboscis. They do not chase prey, but patiently wait for it to swim by itself, so for a comfortable life they need a small current.
Life expectancy is limited to 4-5 years, but they manage to leave millions of offspring.
They do not take root well in aquariums. The reason is an unusual environment, exposure to stress. They need a lot of small animals for food: more than 3 thousand crustaceans and shrimp per day. Without food they quickly die from exhaustion.
The female transfers the eggs from her body to a special pouch for the male. Thus, males bear offspring for 1.5 months. This is one of the few types when a dad rushes around with a child. The number of fry ranges from 1600 to 2 depending on the species. Once born, the cubs immediately set off on an independent journey.
The main enemies of the skate are crabs, penguins, stingrays and other hungry predators. Almost the entire body consists of bones, scales and spines. There are few people willing to feast on such prey.
Red Book
For several years, the unique fish has been a symbol sea power Northern Fleet. It was displayed on the coat of arms of Zaozersk, a city in Murmansk region. Then the image of the skate was replaced by a dolphin.
In the coastal waters of Russia there are 2 species of fish living in the Black, Azov and Japanese seas.
The Red Book contains 30 out of 32 species of animals. Their habitats are still polluted, and numerous jellyfish destroy the nutritious plankton. The reason for the mass catch is its beautiful appearance.
One in a hundred fry is able to grow to maturity. The causes of extinction are related to human economic activities. The fish are caught by the Chinese, Filipinos, and Indonesians for pseudo-medicinal purposes (of course, these creatures cannot cure anyone) and for making souvenirs from dried exhibits.
Seahorse liver and eyes are considered a healthy delicacy and are served in expensive restaurants. Chinese cuisine offers fried skates on sticks.
These creatures are successfully bred in the zoos of Berlin, Stuttgart, Basel, the California Aquarium and the National Aquarium in Baltimore.
Everyone knows seahorses. They swim vertically, which is not typical for fish, and their appearance is so memorable that it is difficult to find a person who is not familiar with the profile of a seahorse. This fish has been known to man since ancient times. He still uses it to this day to prepare medicinal potions for asthma and skin diseases, despite the fishing ban. Of the 32 species of seahorses, 30 are listed in the Red Book.
Among fish, the seahorse is known for monogamy, i.e. for keeping partners faithful until the end of life. Their courtship during the breeding season is very touching, and the male is in charge of bearing the offspring. An interesting experiment was conducted. One female and two males were placed in the aquarium. After courtship, the female gave preference to one male, to whom she laid her unfertilized eggs. After this, the “pregnant” male was removed to another aquarium. Left alone with another male, although the female paid attention to his advances, it never came to the point of breeding offspring.
Seahorses are the only animals on our planet in which the males carry an unborn baby. To do this, they have a special pouch on their stomach, into which the female lays eggs, and the male fertilizes them with his sperm already inside.
When the first male returned to the aquarium, the female again chose her “first love”, although invitations came from both males equally. Again, after fertilization, the male was removed from the aquarium while the female's behavior was observed. During six reproductive cycles, the female chose only one male.
By the way, childbirth for a male can be very painful, and at the end of it, the seahorse can die, leaving behind up to 1,500 miniature horses.
The high fertility of seahorses, as well as the fact that the fry develop in the “womb” of the father, made their offspring quite tenacious, compared to ordinary “fish” standards. The lion's share of all the offspring of other fish die in the form of eggs, and the small seahorse develops directly inside the adult fish. And although out of a thousand fry only 5% will grow up and be able to continue the race, this is compensated by the high fertility of skates. Once the seahorses are in the water, the male stops caring for them, and they set off to swim freely.
Analysis of the structure of the seahorse confirms that this fish evolved from the pipefish about 13 million years ago. Indeed, just one look at the pipefish tells you that it is a “straightened” seahorse. Presumably this split into two species occurred due to the formation of vast areas of shallow waters, which allowed marine forests and coral reefs to become widespread. Living in such areas required the fish to have a protective color. As a result, seahorses acquired green camouflage for their habitat in mangroves. For coral reefs, the color of seahorses is different - bright red and yellow.
Seahorses can also change their color slightly. So, while courting a female, they can acquire the color of the friend they are interested in.
Critically endangered seahorses are very difficult to breed in captivity. It is known that fish locked inside an aquarium go into stressful state and are susceptible to various diseases. Therefore, in captivity, seahorses live only in aquariums that most closely replicate the atmosphere of their natural habitat. In this case, you can count on the appearance of offspring. Use of seahorses as exotic aquarium fish has pushed some people to artificially modify their bodies. To do this, the seahorse's tail is bent in the opposite direction to give the animal a letter shape. S.
The very appearance of these fish evokes pleasant associations with childhood, toys and fairy tales.
The horse swims in an upright position and tilts its head so gracefully that, looking at it, it is impossible not to compare it with some small magical horse.
It is covered not with scales, but with bone plates. However, in his shell he is so light and fast that he literally floats in the water, and his body shimmers with all colors - from orange to dove-blue, from lemon yellow to fiery red. Judging by the brightness of its colors, this fish can be compared with tropical birds.
Seahorses inhabit the coastal waters of tropical and subtropical seas. But they are also found in the North Sea, for example, near south coast England. They choose quieter places; They don't like the turbulent current.
Among them there are dwarfs the size of a little finger, and there are giants about thirty centimeters. The smallest species - Hippocampus zosterae (dwarf seahorse) - is found in Gulf of Mexico. Its length does not exceed four centimeters, and the body is very hardy.
In Black and Mediterranean seas You can find the long-faced, spotted Hippocampus guttulatus, whose length reaches 12-18 centimeters. The most famous are representatives of the species Hippocampus kuda, which lives off the coast of Indonesia. Seahorses of this species (their length is 14 centimeters) are brightly and variegatedly colored, some with specks, others with stripes. The largest seahorses are found near Australia.
Whether they are dwarfs or giants, seahorses look alike like brothers: a trusting look, capricious lips and an elongated “horse” muzzle. Their tail is curved towards the belly, and their head is decorated with horns. It is impossible to confuse these graceful and colorful fish, which look like jewelry or toys, with any inhabitant of the water element.
How does pregnancy proceed in males?
Even now, zoologists find it difficult to say how many species of seahorses there are. Possibly 30-32 species, although this figure is subject to change. The fact is that seahorses are difficult to classify. Their appearance is too changeable. And they know how to hide in such a way that a needle thrown into a haystack would be jealous.
When Amanda Vincent of Montreal's McGill University began studying seahorses in the late 1980s, she was frustrated: "At first I couldn't even notice the little ones." Masters of mimicry, in a moment of danger they change their color, repeating the color of surrounding objects. Therefore, they are easily mistaken for algae. Many seahorses, like gutta-percha dolls, can even change their body shape. They develop small growths and nodules. Some seahorses can be difficult to distinguish from corals.
This plasticity, this “color music” of the body helps them not only fool their enemies, but also seduce their partners. German zoologist Ruediger Verhasselt shares his observations: “I had a pink-red male in my aquarium. I placed a bright yellow female with red speckles next to him. The male began to look after the new fish and after a few days it turned the same color as it - even red specks appeared.”
To watch enthusiastic pantomimes and colorful confessions, you need to go underwater early in the morning. Only in the pre-dawn twilight (however, sometimes in the sunset hours) seahorses wander in pairs through the underwater thickets of algae, this sea jungle. In their confessions, they follow a funny etiquette: they nod their heads, greeting their friend, while clinging to neighboring plants with their tails. Sometimes they freeze when they come together in a “kiss.” Or they whirl around in a stormy love dance, and the males constantly inflate their bellies.
The date is over - and the fish swim away to the sides. Adju! Until next time! Seahorses usually live in monogamous pairs, loving each other to the death, which they often have in the form of nets. After the death of a partner, his half misses him, but after a few days or weeks he finds a partner again. Seahorses housed in an aquarium are particularly affected by the loss of a partner. And it happens that they die one after another, unable to bear the grief.
What is the secret of such affection? Kindred spirits? Here's how biologists explain it: By regularly walking and petting each other, seahorses synchronize their biological clocks. This helps them choose the most appropriate moment for procreation. Then their meeting drags on for several hours, or even days. They glow with excitement and spin in a dance in which, as we remember, the males inflate their bellies. It turns out that the male has a wide fold on his stomach where the female lays her eggs.
Surprisingly, in seahorses the offspring is carried by the male, having previously fertilized the eggs in the abdominal pouch.
But such behavior is not as exotic as it might seem. There are also other species of fish, for example, cichlids, in which the eggs are hatched by males. But only in seahorses do we deal with a process similar to pregnancy. Fabric on inside The brood pouch in the male thickens, as in the uterus of mammals. This tissue becomes a kind of placenta; it connects the father's body with the embryos and nourishes them. This process is controlled by the hormone prolactin, which stimulates lactation in humans - the formation of mother's milk.
With the onset of pregnancy, walks in underwater forests stop. The male stays in an area of about one square meter. In order not to compete with him in obtaining food, the female delicately swims to the side.
After a month and a half, “birth” occurs. The seahorse presses against the seaweed stalk and inflates its belly again. Sometimes a whole day passes before the first fry slips out of the bag and into the wild. Then the young will begin to emerge in pairs, faster and faster, and soon the bag will expand so much that dozens of fry will swim out of it at the same time. The number of newborns varies among species: some seahorses hatch up to 1,600 babies, while others give birth to only two fry.
Sometimes the “birth” is so difficult that the males die from exhaustion. In addition, if for some reason the embryos die, then the male who carried them will also die.
Evolution cannot explain the origin of the seahorse's reproductive functions. The whole process of childbearing is too “unorthodox”. Indeed, the structure of the seahorse appears to be a mystery if you try to explain it as a result of evolution. As one leading expert said several years ago: “In terms of evolution, the seahorse is in the same category as the platypus. Because he is a mystery that confuses and destroys all theories trying to explain the origin of this fish! Recognize the Divine Creator, and everything will be explained.”
What do seahorses do if they're not flirting or expecting offspring? One thing is certain: they do not shine with success in swimming, which is not surprising given their constitution. They have; only three small fins: the dorsal one helps to swim forward, and two gill fins maintain vertical balance and serve as a rudder. In a moment of danger, seahorses can briefly speed up their movement, flapping their fins up to 35 times per second (some scientists even call the number “70”). They are much better at vertical maneuvers. By changing the volume of the swim bladder, these fish move up and down in a spiral.
However, most of the time the seahorse hangs motionless in the water, its tail hooked on algae, coral, or even the neck of a relative. It looks like he's ready to hang around all day. However, despite his apparent laziness, he manages to catch a lot of prey - tiny crustaceans and fry. Only recently was it possible to observe how this happens.
The seahorse does not rush after prey, but waits until it swims to it. Then he draws in water, swallowing the careless small fry. Everything happens so quickly that the naked eye cannot notice it. However, scuba diving enthusiasts say that when approaching a seahorse, you sometimes hear the sound of smacking. The appetite of this fish is amazing: as soon as it is born, the seahorse manages to swallow about four thousand miniature shrimp in the first ten hours of life.
In total, he is destined to live, if he’s lucky, four to five years. Enough time to leave behind millions of descendants. It seems that with such numbers, seahorses are assured of prosperity. However, it is not. Out of a thousand fry, on average, only two survive. All the rest themselves fall into someone's mouth. However, in this whirlwind of births and deaths, seahorses have been staying afloat for forty million years. Only human intervention can destroy this species.
According to the message World Fund wildlife, the number of seahorses is rapidly declining. Thirty species of these fish are included in the Red Book, that is, almost all species known to science. Ecology is primarily to blame for this. The world's oceans are turning into a global dump. Its inhabitants are degenerating and dying out.
Half a century ago, the Chesapeake Bay was a narrow, long bay off the coast American states Maryland and Virginia (its length reaches 270 kilometers) were considered a real paradise for seahorses. Now you can hardly find them there. Alison Scarratt, director of the National Aquarium in Baltimore, estimates that ninety percent of the bay's algae have died in the past half century, due to water pollution. But there were algae natural environment seahorse habitat.
Another reason for the decline is the massive catching of seahorses off the coasts of Thailand, Malaysia, Australia and the Philippines. According to Amanda Vincent, at least 26 million of these fish are caught every year. A small part of them then end up in aquariums, and the majority die. For example, these cute fish are dried and used to make souvenirs - brooches, key rings, belt buckles. By the way, for the sake of beauty, their tail is bent back, giving the body the shape of the letter S.
However most of Captured seahorses - about twenty million, according to the World Wildlife Fund - end up in the hands of pharmacists in China, Taiwan, Korea, Indonesia and Singapore. The largest transshipment point for the sale of this “medical raw material” is Hong Kong. From here it is sold to more than thirty countries, including India and Australia. Here, a kilogram of seahorses costs about $1,300.
From these dried fish, crushed and mixed with other substances, for example with tree bark, drugs are prepared that are as popular in Japan, Korea, and China as here - aspirin or analgin. They help with asthma, cough, headaches and especially with impotence. IN Lately this Far Eastern “Viagra” has become popular in Europe.
However, even ancient authors knew that medicines could be prepared from seahorses. Thus, Pliny the Elder (24-79) wrote that in case of hair loss, one should use an ointment prepared from a mixture of dried seahorses, marjoram oil, resin and lard. In 1754, the English Gentlemen's Magazine advised nursing mothers to take seahorse extract "for the better flow of milk." Of course, old recipes can make you smile, but it is carried out now World organization health research into the “medicinal properties of the seahorse.”
Meanwhile, Amanda Vincent and a number of biologists advocate a complete ban on the uncontrolled harvesting and trade of seahorses, trying to put an end to predatory fishing, as they managed to do with whaling. The situation is that in Asia, seahorses are caught mainly by poachers. To put an end to this, the researcher created the Project Seahorse organization back in 1986, which is trying to protect seahorses in Vietnam, Hong Kong and the Philippines, as well as establish a civilized trade in them. Things are especially successful on the Philippine island of Handayan.
Residents of the local village of Handumon have been harvesting seahorses for centuries. However, in just ten years, from 1985 to 1995, their catches decreased by almost 70 percent. Therefore, the seahorse rescue program proposed by Amanda Vincent was perhaps the only hope for fishermen.
To begin with, it was decided to create a protected area with a total area of thirty-three hectares, where fishing was completely prohibited. There, all the seahorses were counted and even numbered, putting a collar on them. From time to time, divers looked into this water area and checked whether the “lazy couch potatoes”, seahorses, had swum away from here.
We agreed that outside protected area will not catch males with full brood pouches. If they were caught in the net, they were thrown back into the sea. In addition, ecologists tried to replant mangroves and underwater algae forests - the natural shelters of these fish.
In some zoos - in Stuttgart, Berlin, Basel, as well as in the National Aquarium in Baltimore and the California Aquarium, breeding of these fish is successful. Perhaps they can be saved.
In the seas washing Russia, there are only two species of seahorses (although the species diversity of seahorses is great, in total there are 32 species of seahorses in different seas of the world). These are the Black Sea seahorse and the Japanese seahorse. The first one lives in Black and Seas of Azov, and the second is in Japanese.
“Our” seahorses are small and do not have luxurious long outgrowths all over their bodies, like, for example, the raghorse that lives in warm seas and masquerading as thickets of Sargassum algae. Their shell modestly performs a protective function: it is very strong and is usually colored to match the background color.
Like the multitude of creatures that fill the seas, skies and land, the seahorse has no link that can connect it with any other form of life. Like all major types of living creatures, the complex seahorse was created suddenly, as the book of Genesis tells us.
