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Common Seahorse Hippocampus taeniopterus Bleeker, 1852
[CAAB 37 282033]

Distribution Map see an interactive map here (new window)

The Common Seahorse lives in shallow tropical waters of Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and northern Australia. Individuals are often found in pairs in seagrass beds.

Distribution, ecology and habitat:

Tropical Indo-west Pacific, from Indonesia (Moluccan Seas, Sulawesi and Bali), Papua New Guinea and Australia (from about Darwin, NT, to southern Queensland); benthic in shallow waters along the edges of seagrass beds or in mangrove habitats to about 15 m; juveniles and adults sometimes found in floating weeds well offshore, especially during the wet season.

Size:

Height to 220 mm.

Food and feeding:

Carnivores. Like most other seahorses, this species presumably feeds by sucking small prey items such as crustaceans and planktonic zooplankton into its mouth.

Reproduction and early life history:

Reproduction: Sexes separate, reproduction a form of viviparity or ovoviviparity, whereby the males give birth to tiny independent young. The female uses an ovipositor to transfer her eggs into an elaborate enclosed pouch under the abdomen of the male. The male not only fertilizes the eggs inside the pouch and provides physical protection for the developing embryos, he also osmoregulates and aerates the embryos and may provide some nourishment until the offfspring are born.
Eggs: Not described.
Larvae: Not described.

Characteristics:

Meristics: D 17-18; P 16-18 (rarely 17 or 18); trunk rings 11; tail rings 34-35; subdorsal rings 2 + 1-2.
Head and body: Snout thick in adults, length about equal to post-orbital distance, much shorter than half head length;
Spines and tubercles: Spines low and blunt in juveniles, reducing or becoming rounded and knob-like in adults; subdorsal spines 3-4/0,1,1-0,1,1,1; nasal spine small; shoulder-ring spines small, uppermost at gill-opening, central spine at level of lower pectoral-fin ray, lowermost single, not enlarged; large specimens often with many papillae on nape, interorbital and body.
Coronet: Coronet small but well developed, appearing 'back-swept', with 5 divergent sharp spines on apex in young, spines becoming proportionally smaller with growth; in large adults, apex smooth with 3 rounded points angled posteriorly.
Lateral line: Lateral line pores small, somewhat distinct, becoming intermittent on tail, ranging to 20^th ring. Pores often positioned between 2 large papillae, although large specimens usually have many additional papillae on nape and interorbital, as well as body.

Colour:

In life, overall grey to brown, often with fine dark spots, pale scribbles and striations; females sometimes yellow with pupil-sized black spots that may elongate on trunk over rings. In preservative - pale to dark brown, usually with small dark spots.

Similar species:

H. taeniopterus is most similar to H. kuda, a species not found in Australian waters. H. kuda differs in having slight meristic and morphological differences, as well as usually having dermal appendages on the head spines, coronet, and on the enlarged spines or tubercles of superior ridges.

Fisheries:

None. There is no known trade in this species for the aquarium or Asian Traditional Medicine industries.

Conservation Status:

International: Listed under Appendix II of the Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES). As a result, the species is subject to the Convention, http://www.cites.org/.
Australian legislation: Marine Listed under the Federal Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act 1999). http://www.environment.gov.au/epbc/species/marine.html

Remarks:

H. taeniopterus is not as common in Australian waters as it is throughout other parts of its range. Adults regularly occur in floating weed and H. taeniopterus individuals in Australian waters may just be vagrants from southeastern Papua New Guinea rather than being permanently resident in Australian waters.

Other common names:

None

Original citation:

Hippocampus taeniopterus Bleeker 1852, Nat. Tijdschr. Ned. Ind. 3: 306, Ambon I., Molucca Is., Indonesia.

Etymology:

From the Greek ippos = horse and kampe = curvature. The specific name taeniopterus is from the Latin taenia meaning ribbon, fillet and pterus meaning wing.

References:

Allen, G.R. 1997. Marine Fishes of Tropical Australia and South-east Asia. Western Australian Museum.

Allen, G.R. & M. Adrim. 2003. Coral reef fishes of Indonesia. Zool. Studies 42(1): 1-72.

Bleeker, P. 1852. Bijdrage tot de kennis der ichthyologische fauna van de Moluksche Eilanden. Visschen van Amboina en Ceram. Natuurkd. Tijdschr. Neder. Indië 3: 229-309.

Hoese, D.F., D.J. Bray, J.R. Paxton & G.R. Allen. 2006. Fishes. In Beesley, P.L. & A. Wells. (eds.) Zoological catalogue of Australia. Volume 35. ABRS & CSIRO Publishing: Australia, 2178 pp.

Kuiter, R.H. 2000. Seahorses, Pipefishes and their Relatives. TMC Publishing, Chorleywood, UK, 240 pp.

Kuiter, R.H. 2001. Revision of the Australian Seahorse of the genus Hippocampus (Syngnathiformes: Syngnathidae) with descriptions of nine new species. Rec. Aust. Mus. 53: 293-340.

Lourie S.A., A.C.J. Vincent & H.J. Hall. 1999. Seahorses: an identification guide to the world's species and their conservation. Project Seahorse, London, UK. 214 pp.

Pogonoski, J.J., D.A. Pollard & J.R. Paxton. 2002. Conservation Overview and Action Plan for Australian Threatened and Potentially Threatened Marine and Estuarine Fishes. Canberra, Environment Australia, 375 pp.

Randall, J.E., G.R. Allen & R.C. Steene. 1997. Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea, 2nd Ed. Crawford House Press, Bathurst.