The Seahorse

A mesmerising animal who is sadly under threat.

- Noleen Fourie

Curious creature

He might not look it at all, but the seahorse is in fact a fish, and is classified in the class Actinopterygii, the bony fish, which includes the cod and tuna. He does have fish-like traits, which include gills he uses for breathing, as well as a swim bladder that controls his buoyancy.

Although the seahorse is capable of moving upwards, downwards, forwards and backwards, he is not much of a swimmer due to his awkwardly shaped body. He moves by frantically beating his dorsal fin – this could happen at up to 50 times per second, and using the rest of his tiny fins for steering. Doing all of this only enables him to move slowly, and therefore a seahorse prefers to take it easy. They can hold on to seagrasses or seaweed with their tails, and sometimes do this for several days on end. Not surprising, considering that a seahorse who gets caught up in stormy seas can die of exhaustion.

The seahorse’s body is covered with interlocking plates, which in turn are covered by a thin layer of skin. They do not have scales.

Feeding time