PotBellied Seahorses by Jessica Edling Hippocampus Abdominalis AKA

Pot-Bellied Seahorses by Jessica Edling

Hippocampus Abdominalis AKA: Pot-bellied seahorse, Big-bellied seahorse, Eastern Potbelly seahorse, Hippocampus abdominalis, from the ‘Sketchbook of Fishes’ by William Buelow Gould, 1832

Seahorses are bony fishes • Gills • Fins • Swim bladder Body is covered in bony plates Covered in skin, not scales Eyes move independently of each other, like a chameleon Camouflage Colors vary: • • grey, white, brown, yellow, orange splotches, strips

Males vs Females Males have: • Longer tails • Shorter, heavier snouts • Brood pouch • Yellow mark close to the top of the brood pouch • Darker markings

Habitats Southeastern Australia, Tasmania, New Zealand • • • rocky reefs in shallow estuaries intertidal rock pools coastal reefs Shallow Water (up to 50 meters) • Found in algae, seagrass & rocks Deep Water (50 -100 meters) • Attach to sponges Open Water • Clings to rafts of algae, seagrass, artificial structures (fishing nets)

Food Seahorses have no teeth & no stomach Snout creates a vacuum that draws prey into their mouth Adults mouth: eat any live animal small enough to fit into their shrimp zooplankton crustaceans small fish small invertebrates

Reproduction Sex Role Reversal Females lay eggs, then deposit the eggs into the male’s brood pouch Males carry the eggs to term (30 days) & give birth

Brood pouch develops on males at maturity (around 6 months) Breeding occurs year-round, peaking during warmer months Males & females do not form monogamous pairs Exhibit elaborate courtship behavior, including: • Color changes • Postural displays • “Dance” Juveniles are tiny perfect replicas of adults (15 -20 mm)

Sources Bahr, A. , Sommer, S. , Mattle, B. , & Wilson, A. (2012). Mate Choices in Hippocampus Abdominalus. Behavioral Ecology , 23 (4), 869 -878. Bray, D. , & Thompson, V. (2018). Hippocampus Abdominalus. Retrieved from Fishes of Australia: http: //fishesofaustralia. net. au/home/species/3332 IUCN. (2018). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Retrieved from IUCN 2018: https: //www. iucnredlist. org/species/10057/54903879 Vincent, A. , Koldewey, H. , & Foster, S. (n. d. ). Hippocampus Abdominalus. Retrieved from Project Seahorse: http: //www. projectseahorse. org