How to Catch a Seahorse

Public aquariums display seahorses for education, but seahorses are difficult to keep and aren't recommended as pets. There's thirty-five known seahorse species living in tropical waters. Many people try to catch seahorses for various reasons. This fact, coupled with human activity, degrades their natural habitat and accounts for the seahorse's vulnerability of extinction. However, there are times when they must be caught and separated from the aquarium.

Difficulty: Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Saltwater aquarium
• Fish birthing container

1. Observe and take notice of the saltwater aquarium. The males of all seahorse species are one of nature's anomalies. They're the ones that carry and give birth to their young. A pregnant male must be caught and removed from the aquarium so that its young won't have to compete for food with bigger and stronger seahorses.

2. Obtain a fish birthing container ranging anywhere from one to ten gallons depending on the seahorse species. Fill the birthing container with at least 50 percent water from the original saltwater aquarium.

3. Catch the pregnant male with a fish net and place into the birthing container.

4. Remove the adult male from the birthing center once the babies are born in the same manner that he was placed into the birthing container. This is to prevent the adult male from eating all of the babies' nutrients.

5. Wait until the babies are at least eight weeks old and ready to graduate to a larger tank before attempting to catch and move them.

Tips & Warnings

• Seahorses feed on sea grasses and live among sponges in relatively shallow water. Thousands of seahorses are captured and killed each year accidentally in shrimp nets. Others are caught purposely for Eastern medicine or for aquarium trade.
• The North American seahorse population lives off of Florida's Gulf Coast and Keys.
• Don't attempt to catch a baby seahorse with a net. It is likely to not to survive.