Short-Snouted Seahorse


The Short-snouted Seahorse has its name because it has a head shaped like a horse and it has a short nose that is slightly upturned. It is a beautiful looking creature even though it’s body is covered with wart-like lumps, making it look rather knobbly. When swimming it keeps in an upright position and uses a fin that is situated in the middle of its body to propel forward. When it wants to climb on plants or seaweed it uses its long tail to grip so it won’t be washed away by strong currents.

This seahorse can be difficult to detect under water as it is capable of changing colour to either brown or orange, and other colours too so it adapts to its surroundings. It does this so it is better camouflaged, which is a good thing seeing that humans like to have them as souvenirs because they dry out intact.

The Short-snouted Seahorse has excellent eyesight and unlike human eyes it can move its eyes independently which means it can look forwards and backwards at the same time. This makes hunting for food easier for seahorses especially since they only use their eyes to hunt. When they find something to eat they suck their food up through their snouts – similar to how a hoover sucks up dirt. They eat on average about 40 times a day but they don’t chew their food, they just break it up into pieces.

When seahorses find a partner they stay together for life and after the courtship dance and mating, the female lays her eggs in a special pouch located on the front part of the male’s body. Once she has done that, the male takes over the responsibility of looking after the young until they are ready to hatch.

Photo Credit: © Copyright Sally Sharrock