Anyone have success raising sea horses from birth to adults without doing anything other than taking care the tank and existing sea horses? I'm thinking about setting up a large tank with sea horses. I want a large tank with lots of life because I know with lots live rock and plants means lots of food for the sea horses. I travel an lot for work and want to know if it is possible to let them raise up naturally. From what I've seen the biggest threat is the power head. I'm think about a tank in the 90 gallon range.
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Successfully raising Sea Horses
- Thread starter AWD
- Start date
It absolutely cannot work. Not nearly enough food available, and unsuitable conditions. Baby seahorses need to be in what is virtually a plankton soup, surrounded by living food within easy reach virtually 24/7. In a closed system this means constant replacement of both food and quality compromised water. A gentle circulation system simulating the natural currents that keep the tiny creatures drifting through prey filled water continuously is also an absolute necessity. Raising baby seahorses is a labor intensive project requiring specialized equipment. Even in the best aquarium, one long established with lots of live rock and tiny organisms, newborn seahorses perish within a couple of days. It's not like guppies and mollies.
I never assumed any comparison to guppies or mollies. I had a 300 gallon sump for another tank and had a couple sea horses in there for several years until the chiller quit and killed off everything. I'm itching to get back into it, but this time on a much smaller scale (600 gallons before) and only sea horses. I don't like the idea of just letting baby sea horses die off and I don't have the time to take care of them either. Maybe I should see if anyone in the area raises them and he/she can come get them when they are born. Anyone in Lexington, KY?
Last month, while snorkeling through shallow eelgrass near an inlet at the Jersey shore I found a 3/4 inch seahorse clinging to an algae covered chunk of cement block. It was well past its planktonic stage so I brought it home and placed it in a 90 gal aquarium that I use for locally collected summer Gulf Stream tropicals. The aquarium has been set up for many years and is swarming with all sorts of tiny life forms. The seahorse is the only fish in it that hunts down the really small stuff, and it spends all its time looking for prey too small for me to see. I can see it eating, but not its prey. The seahorse scours every inch of the tank, including the algae covered glass, all the live rock, and the sandy substrate. It is a very active and vigorous swimmer. It evidently finds enough to eat since it has doubled in size, and recently began eating baby brine shrimp. I would not add any additional micro food eaters to this aquarium because it seems to me that the seahorse has to work hard to locate all the food it needs. Having four fish in an environment that provides enough food for only three fish means that each fish gets only three quarters of the food they need, and all four starve to death.
Most oceanic fishes use a reproductive strategy that relies on producing large numbers of very small young that are dispersed into the plankton, taking advantage of the abundant food source and the currents that distribute juveniles over a wide area, helping to ensure the survival of the species by facilitating the colonization of as much appropriate habitat as possible. These methods and considerations do not apply to most freshwater fishes living in lakes and rivers. Freshwater fishes generally have a much better chance of surviving unaided in an aquarium because an aquarium more closely replicates their natural environment. Seahorse young are not very numerous and are relatively large, but they still are planktonic for the first weeks of their lives. Any attempt at raising these animals in captivity must take this into account. The guppies and mollies comment was not meant to be disparaging. Its purpose was to illustrate the very different nature and requirements of most viviparous freshwater fish.
Most oceanic fishes use a reproductive strategy that relies on producing large numbers of very small young that are dispersed into the plankton, taking advantage of the abundant food source and the currents that distribute juveniles over a wide area, helping to ensure the survival of the species by facilitating the colonization of as much appropriate habitat as possible. These methods and considerations do not apply to most freshwater fishes living in lakes and rivers. Freshwater fishes generally have a much better chance of surviving unaided in an aquarium because an aquarium more closely replicates their natural environment. Seahorse young are not very numerous and are relatively large, but they still are planktonic for the first weeks of their lives. Any attempt at raising these animals in captivity must take this into account. The guppies and mollies comment was not meant to be disparaging. Its purpose was to illustrate the very different nature and requirements of most viviparous freshwater fish.
I'm not sure what you mean by seahorse young not being very numerous unless you are talking about ones like zosterae and barbouri.
My reidi have produce over 200 at a time and there a lot of them producing 400 to 600 or more.
Some species produce over a thousand each brood.
For me, I'm not concerned with "planktonic", only that they are benthic or pelagic.
Benthic are the easier ones to raised as they are hitching at birth.
My reidi have produce over 200 at a time and there a lot of them producing 400 to 600 or more.
Some species produce over a thousand each brood.
For me, I'm not concerned with "planktonic", only that they are benthic or pelagic.
Benthic are the easier ones to raised as they are hitching at birth.
Most seahorses are benthopelagic, living just above but not actually on the sea floor. There are a few pelagic seahorses, primarily those that live in Sargassum weed or similar structure that floats in the open ocean. Seahorses are not able to swim in a manner that would permit them to be truly pelagic in the fullest sense. Of course, all these definitions are somewhat elastic, and seahorses tend to be exceptional and unique in ways that exclude them from easy or broad classifications which are in any case inadquate man-made constructs. The great majority apparently live close to the bottom in relatively shallow water. Those that inhabit the open oceans are tied to what are, in effect, platforms that provide the equivalent of a shallow seafloor. I know of no seahorses that swim freely in the water column and inhabit open water.
Compared to most marine fishes the brood size of sea horses is modest. A few hundred is a small number. The low number and comparatively large size of newborns, proportional to the size of adults, are probably necessary adaptions reflecting the physiological structure and habitat requirements of most known seahorses. The variety and morphological nature of seahorses can be bewildering. As with most things connected with the sea, much of what we think we know is speculative.
Compared to most marine fishes the brood size of sea horses is modest. A few hundred is a small number. The low number and comparatively large size of newborns, proportional to the size of adults, are probably necessary adaptions reflecting the physiological structure and habitat requirements of most known seahorses. The variety and morphological nature of seahorses can be bewildering. As with most things connected with the sea, much of what we think we know is speculative.
Well I'm certainly not knowledgeable enough to dispute your information.
However, for the purposes of the hobbyist, we are concerned with the benthic and pelagic status of seahorses normally found in the hobby trade which distinguishes the likely difficulty of raising the fry, at least to some degree.
Earlier you mentioned specialized equipment but I'm not sure if you meant that for all or just certain species probably not common to the hobby.
I see people on the "org" that raise some species in ordinary tanks and others using a form of kreisel.
However I prefer to use 4L pickle jars myself.
Raising H. reidi Fry
However, for the purposes of the hobbyist, we are concerned with the benthic and pelagic status of seahorses normally found in the hobby trade which distinguishes the likely difficulty of raising the fry, at least to some degree.
Earlier you mentioned specialized equipment but I'm not sure if you meant that for all or just certain species probably not common to the hobby.
I see people on the "org" that raise some species in ordinary tanks and others using a form of kreisel.
However I prefer to use 4L pickle jars myself.
Raising H. reidi Fry
Kreisels, or more properly planktonkreisels, have been around for years. They basically create the continual circular current I referred to in my earlier posts. They certainly are specialized equipment, and work best in round and oval aquaria or standard tanks with the corners modified to make them rounded. The current is the primary element; adequate food comes next, along with preventing the water from becoming degraded because of the unavoidable amounts of uneaten food. The term kreisel is borrowed from sports, and actually means a centrifuge.The centrifugal forces in the circular current can be used in several ways, including enhanced waste removal.
The benthic/pelagic distinction among seahorses is primarily the creation of people in the business of selling seahorses and aquarium equipment and can, like many terms used in commercial marketing and sales, be an oversimplification and hence misleading.
I've occasinally seen references to 'pelagic seahorses' in scuba magazines. These usually turn out to be references to juveniles still in a drifting current borne stage, consequently still part of the plankton mass.
The benthic/pelagic distinction among seahorses is primarily the creation of people in the business of selling seahorses and aquarium equipment and can, like many terms used in commercial marketing and sales, be an oversimplification and hence misleading.
I've occasinally seen references to 'pelagic seahorses' in scuba magazines. These usually turn out to be references to juveniles still in a drifting current borne stage, consequently still part of the plankton mass.
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I'm certainly envious of your knowledge. However, anything you have stated that I don't know, is no aid to my raising of reidi fry.
If my terminology is an oversimplification, it works for me and probably for a lot of others.
If people listened to what you write, there would have been a lot fewer people succeeding in breeding seahorses because they would have figured the process to be too daunting.
I am incorrect to say that the seahorses giving birth in our tanks are benthic or pelagic as I actually mean the fry of these seahorses are usually one or the other.
In the seahorse hobby, people raising the fry have more concerns for the fry that don't hitch at birth and we refer to those fry as pelagic. For the fry like southern erectus who do hitch at birth, we refer to them as benthic.
The pelagic can be more problematic to raise because most times they are smaller, and from not hitching, other problems develop if they stay at the surface to suck air.
Again for the hobbyist raising fry, whether or not they use the "specialized equipment" of a knreisel is just a choice, not a necessity based on my experience and what I read on the "org".
I know that H. erectus are being raised in tanks by people on the "org", as well as many other fairly simple set ups. As for my reidi jars, they certainly are not "specialized equipment" and I raise the more difficult reidi.
I agree that most but not all prefer to use "cornerless" rearing containers.
If my terminology is an oversimplification, it works for me and probably for a lot of others.
If people listened to what you write, there would have been a lot fewer people succeeding in breeding seahorses because they would have figured the process to be too daunting.
I am incorrect to say that the seahorses giving birth in our tanks are benthic or pelagic as I actually mean the fry of these seahorses are usually one or the other.
In the seahorse hobby, people raising the fry have more concerns for the fry that don't hitch at birth and we refer to those fry as pelagic. For the fry like southern erectus who do hitch at birth, we refer to them as benthic.
The pelagic can be more problematic to raise because most times they are smaller, and from not hitching, other problems develop if they stay at the surface to suck air.
Again for the hobbyist raising fry, whether or not they use the "specialized equipment" of a knreisel is just a choice, not a necessity based on my experience and what I read on the "org".
I know that H. erectus are being raised in tanks by people on the "org", as well as many other fairly simple set ups. As for my reidi jars, they certainly are not "specialized equipment" and I raise the more difficult reidi.
I agree that most but not all prefer to use "cornerless" rearing containers.
I was not trying to encourage or discourage anyone from doing anything, nor was I attempting to provide useful information relative to seahorse husbandry. My initial point was only that seahorse fry, if left to their own devices, will starve in a standard aquarium unless you provide appropriate habitat and feed them well. Feeding them well requires some sort of an effective current and the introduction of (pardon the term) specialized foods.
Fairly simple set ups are fine, as long as they do the job. Specialized does not mean complicated or expensive. An airstone in a jar will provide an excellent current. That's how I grew rotifers when I raised Clownfish and seahorses (erectus, or 'hudsonius' as we used to say 40 years ago) back in the 70s. The specialized equipment was copied from things I had seen at Woods Hole and at the state lobster hatchery on Martha's Vineyard almost a half century ago. Contemporary methods are very similar, almost unchanged. What I used was inexpensive and home-made, but specialized as hell. Kreisel is not a choice. It's not even a piece of equipment. It's more a methodology, an effect that can be produced in a closed system in several different ways. Simple is always better.
I'm not sure who the "we" is when you write '"we refer to them as benthic". Kinda sounds like there's some kind of little club thing going on. The only seahorses I've raised were erectus, the northern variety 'we' find here in NJ. Tough little buggers. Reidi are beautiful animals. I'm an avid diver, have been since I was 7 years old. Two years ago, in Dominica, I watched a mating dance between two extremely large and incredibly gorgeous reidi in 20 feet of water. They repeatedly swam upward together, entwining as they ascended almost to the surface, then rapidly swam downward, separating as they descended. I watched them do this about a dozen times during a thirty minute period. Their focus and awareness of each other was palpable, their grace exquisite. It was magnificent, something I'll always remember.
Fairly simple set ups are fine, as long as they do the job. Specialized does not mean complicated or expensive. An airstone in a jar will provide an excellent current. That's how I grew rotifers when I raised Clownfish and seahorses (erectus, or 'hudsonius' as we used to say 40 years ago) back in the 70s. The specialized equipment was copied from things I had seen at Woods Hole and at the state lobster hatchery on Martha's Vineyard almost a half century ago. Contemporary methods are very similar, almost unchanged. What I used was inexpensive and home-made, but specialized as hell. Kreisel is not a choice. It's not even a piece of equipment. It's more a methodology, an effect that can be produced in a closed system in several different ways. Simple is always better.
I'm not sure who the "we" is when you write '"we refer to them as benthic". Kinda sounds like there's some kind of little club thing going on. The only seahorses I've raised were erectus, the northern variety 'we' find here in NJ. Tough little buggers. Reidi are beautiful animals. I'm an avid diver, have been since I was 7 years old. Two years ago, in Dominica, I watched a mating dance between two extremely large and incredibly gorgeous reidi in 20 feet of water. They repeatedly swam upward together, entwining as they ascended almost to the surface, then rapidly swam downward, separating as they descended. I watched them do this about a dozen times during a thirty minute period. Their focus and awareness of each other was palpable, their grace exquisite. It was magnificent, something I'll always remember.
I agree with your original point about the fry in the tank.
My posts were a result of not knowing that 200 to over 1000 fry at a time was not high numbers.
The other regarding specialized equipment was basically an interpretation I guess because I still can't see an aquarium or a jar being specialized as I thought specialized would be something specifically for the fry raising.
As for raising Northern erectus, I'll never have the pleasure of doing so being in Canada and landlocked to boot.
I don't even remember seeing a post before of someone raising Norther erectus, but have seen the comment that Northerns produce pelagic fry and Southerns produce benthic fry.
Unfortunately I'm unable to dive any more but vacation diving on reefs is what in the long run got me into salt water aquariums.
I've not seen any seahorses on my diving ventures or I may have started into them much sooner.
The "we" refers to myself and some other hobby seahorse breeders in south western Ontario as well as some like minded hobbyists who post on seahorse.org.
There are a variety of ways posted on the org but most do include the water motion.
For me, I believe that bacteria was the cause of my early failures but when I went to the jars, it was simple to clean them every other day and that's when I finally succeeded.
My posts were a result of not knowing that 200 to over 1000 fry at a time was not high numbers.
The other regarding specialized equipment was basically an interpretation I guess because I still can't see an aquarium or a jar being specialized as I thought specialized would be something specifically for the fry raising.
As for raising Northern erectus, I'll never have the pleasure of doing so being in Canada and landlocked to boot.
I don't even remember seeing a post before of someone raising Norther erectus, but have seen the comment that Northerns produce pelagic fry and Southerns produce benthic fry.
Unfortunately I'm unable to dive any more but vacation diving on reefs is what in the long run got me into salt water aquariums.
I've not seen any seahorses on my diving ventures or I may have started into them much sooner.
The "we" refers to myself and some other hobby seahorse breeders in south western Ontario as well as some like minded hobbyists who post on seahorse.org.
There are a variety of ways posted on the org but most do include the water motion.
For me, I believe that bacteria was the cause of my early failures but when I went to the jars, it was simple to clean them every other day and that's when I finally succeeded.
Seahorses are masters of disguise. I find them much more easily up here in NJ in summer while snorkeling than anywhere in the Caribbean. Still, you have to know how to look for them. They will twist themselves like pretzles in order to blend into their surroundings when something big comes swimming by. In the wild most seahorses are not docile and passive, as they tend to become when confined in an aquarium.
Northern erectus are far more active and aggressive than southern forms. They are extremely easy to breed, but they and their newborns are small, and smaller fry are more difficult to raise. I and lots of others have raised them successfully, and when I was more actively immersed in the hobby I actually reached second generation success. Once. I'm semi-retired now, quite lazy, and prefer to travel, scuba dive, and snorkel. Constant vigilance, endless maintenance, and crashing cultures are things of the past
Dominica seems to have more seahorses than most Caribbean islands. I go there twice a year, for the rainforested mountains, wild parrots and numerous reptiles as much as for the pristine diving. Only 70,000 people on a fairly large island with a tiny airport too small for jets. I'm sorry to hear you don't dive anymore. I hope you can at least snorkel. I was snorkeling when I encountered the reidi I described. Seahorses are more common in shallow water close to shore, so the occasional seahorse that excites scuba divers is rare only because most of them are close to the beach, around turtle grass beds and other structure. I've found them in quiet bays in Jamaica and Grenada in less than two feet of water.
I admire your committment to captive breeding. I hope you have great success in the future.
Northern erectus are far more active and aggressive than southern forms. They are extremely easy to breed, but they and their newborns are small, and smaller fry are more difficult to raise. I and lots of others have raised them successfully, and when I was more actively immersed in the hobby I actually reached second generation success. Once. I'm semi-retired now, quite lazy, and prefer to travel, scuba dive, and snorkel. Constant vigilance, endless maintenance, and crashing cultures are things of the past
Dominica seems to have more seahorses than most Caribbean islands. I go there twice a year, for the rainforested mountains, wild parrots and numerous reptiles as much as for the pristine diving. Only 70,000 people on a fairly large island with a tiny airport too small for jets. I'm sorry to hear you don't dive anymore. I hope you can at least snorkel. I was snorkeling when I encountered the reidi I described. Seahorses are more common in shallow water close to shore, so the occasional seahorse that excites scuba divers is rare only because most of them are close to the beach, around turtle grass beds and other structure. I've found them in quiet bays in Jamaica and Grenada in less than two feet of water.
I admire your committment to captive breeding. I hope you have great success in the future.
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