The Seahorse
Channel: Nature Jedi
Date: 07/03/2024

Seahorse
Seahorses are tiny fishes that are named for the shape of their head, which looks like the head of a tiny horse. There are at least 50 species of seahorses.

COMMON NAME: Seahorse
SCIENTIFIC NAME: Hippocampus
TYPE: Fish
DIET: Carnivore
GROUP NAME: Herd
AVERAGE LIFE SPAN IN THE WILD: 1 to 5 years
SIZE: 0.6 to 14 inches

You’ll find seahorses in the world’s tropical and temperate coastal waters, swimming upright among seaweed and other plants. Seahorses use their dorsal fins (back fins) to propel slowly forward. To move up and down, seahorses adjust the volume of air in their swim bladders, which is an air pocket inside their bodies.

Tiny, spiny plates cover seahorses' bodies all the way down to their curled, flexible tails. The tail can grasp objects, helpful when seahorses want to anchor themselves to vegetation.