The Singnatids family are a very original fish family , in which we have the Seahorse, the also original Pipefish, the Water Dragon and the Foliated Sea Dragon.
All these specimens are each more original, although the best known of all for amateur aquarists is the Seahorse.
The reproductive habits of seahorses are quite unusual. After a courtship, which is very striking and original, the female introduces her laying tube into the male’s incubator bag, where they are fertilized and begin their development in the father’s womb.
It is quite easy for them to be able to breed in captivity, what is no longer easy is for the young to become adult specimens.
Seahorse
Seahorses are Singnatids native to the Indian and Pacific oceans, where we can find them swimming upright, in their particular way of moving.
In the marine aquarium we will be able to see them as they are fixed to the decorative elements, thanks to their prehensile tail.
They have a very small mouth, so they can only consume miniature-sized prey, such as Artemias.
Because they are very slow to swim, they are not good competitors for food, we have to take this into account to make sure they get the food they need.
They are easy to acclimatize in a community aquarium of at least 100 liters,where they will not have any type of problem to relate to other species.
Learn more: Seahorse
Pipe fish or needle fish
They are fish that are between 2.5 and 30 centimeters long. Its movement is slow, making small undulations with its pectoral fins.
They have a very small mouth, as happens to seahorses, and therefore their prey must be just as small.
To feed, they quickly suck food, swallowing up to 360 baby shrimp in an hour.
The way of reproduction is similar to that of the Seahorse. It is the female that lays the eggs in a spawning membrane, which the male has in the abdomen. From there, he completely ignores it and it is the male who takes care of his offspring.
Once the eggs hatch, the fry move quickly to get away from their parent, who can eat them if he has them within reach.
Water dragon. Common sea dragon
Among biologists there is some confusion with the «Common Water Dragon» and the «Leafy Sea Dragon», since they could be the same species, although according to the World Register of Marine Species, they consider them different.
They bear a certain resemblance to seahorses in that they have a similar elongated snout, but do not have their characteristic prehensile tail.
They are elongated, have bony plates and leaf-shaped extensions on their body, which help them to camouflage themselves from their predators.
When they reach adulthood they have a reddish coloration, with yellow and purple markings. Males can be differentiated from females, because they have a narrower and darker body than their partners.
Foliated sea dragon
Like the water dragon, they are species native to Australia, where they are its marine emblem . We can locate them in freedom, swimming on the southern and eastern coasts of the island.
It is similar to the Water Dragon, except that it has long extensions in the form of sheets of algae throughout its body , which serve as camouflage, and that give the sensation of a floating algae when they swim.
They can measure between 30 and 50 centimeters in length.
They are a threatened species due to their indiscriminate fishing by collectors, and because they are also used in alternative medicine.
